And That's Where Things Get Complicated
by AndroidSister
Summary: Volume Two of my AU First Class Story, as told by Francis Xavier. If you haven't read Volume One(The Future Changes When You See It) then you probably won't get this. It involves timetravel, skewed perception, world saving, intrigue, and unusual family issues. As well as hints of slashy romance, and more. Rated M for safety. *Brand New Chapter Finally Up!*
1. Tactical Losses

**A/N: Thanks for reading this guys. Seriously though, if you haven't read volume one you should go do that first. You will be lost otherwise. Okay I'll shut up now.**

**DISCLAIMER: MARVEL owns the X Men franchise. This storyline, however is mine. I make no money from this, so... Eh. You get the gist.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Tactical Losses**

Charles turned at the sound of a splash to see Raven pop up from beneath the water, giggling.

"Hey! Watch it, Chickie! You're getting water on the towels!" Cain scolded, attempting to shake the lake water off of his shirtsleeve.

Kurt Marko and Mother Xavier were lounging in the sun farther from the water's edge, leaving Cain alone to mind the younger children, as usual. Charles smiled knowingly at the surly teen and dove back underwater, splashing his sister as he went.

He happened to know for a fact that Cain had purposely positioned the pile of towels there in an attempt to dissuade them from getting water on him. Charles stayed under for a surprisingly long time without feeling any need to come up for air. The sand and rock beneath him seemed to glow in this underwater realm. The beams of sunlight piercing through in broad shafts gave his surroundings a blissful surrealism. It was so peaceful and welcoming that he found himself wishing that he could stay forever. It seemed that every time he submerged himself, he needed to surface for air less and less.

"Oooh pretty! I found a mirror!" Raven exclaimed happily as he resurfaced, holding up a beautiful, antique hand mirror.

"Come 'ere let's see it." Cain called back with the slightest hint of resignation in his voice, putting his food aside. "And Charlie: Don't drift away, please! Come back!"

Charles frowned at his stepbrother's odd choice of words. Then he just brushed it off, swimming a little closer as he'd commanded. _Perhaps it's just another one of those slang things? Never mind._

"See? It's not even scratched or nothing!" Raven said animatedly, handing over her newly discovered treasure for Cain's inspection.

"Or _anything_, Love." Their mother corrected lazily. "It's not scratched or anything."

"Sure!" Raven replied, rubbing at a smudge on one edge.

"We don't use double negatives." Their mother added.

"She's ten…" Cain mumbled to himself irritably.

"Okay! It looks really nice, doesn't it?" Raven continued, distracted by her new prize. "Like it's old and special!" Cain chewed his lower lip thoughtfully.

"It looks like an antique." He observed, turning it over in his hands. At that point Charles lost interest and ducked back underwater. The tide was getting stronger but he didn't mind too much. He had always been a strong swimmer. When he resurfaced, he found himself a bit farther from the shore than he'd expected.

"Charles! Stay with us!" Cain snapped, and Charles swam over to the dock. He could feel the teen's stormy blue gaze on him the entire time. Charles grabbed onto the dock and pouted at the others. He didn't think it was really his fault that he'd drifted. He hadn't done it on purpose. _If Cain's so concerned, then why doesn't he just swim out and fetch me?_ Cain turned back to his conversation with mother and Raven smirked and rolled her eyes at him. Charles found himself feeling extremely tempted to stick his tongue out at her. _That would be childish. _He was too old for that now, wasn't he?

The thought immediately vanished from his mind when he caught sight of the lone, melancholy figure standing in the trees a little way behind Raven. He seemed so strangely familiar, watching Charles with sad, silver eyes.

Charles couldn't remember why the man felt so important to him, but he simply knew that he was, and that the figure had lost something that was very precious to him.

* * *

Raven wandered into the dining room to join the others for breakfast, coming in just after Logan. She glanced hopefully at Marie as she passed.

"Any change?"

"Nothin' yet." Marie responded grimly, glancing at Erik's empty place at the table.

"Damn! My turn then, I guess." Raven concluded with a yawn and headed for the kitchen. This time Lucy already had the breakfast tray ready to go by the time she arrived.

"I'll take it up this time Lucy." Raven told her, taking the tray out of the older woman's arms.

"Thanks Miss." The servant replied with a polite nod and went back to her duties. Raven found Erik in Charles' room, sitting in the armchair at his bedside, just as he had been on the past three mornings since the Beach. She silently crossed the room and set his tray down on the bedside table.

"Morning." She greeted, handing him his coffee. He grunted an acknowledgement and accepted the mug. Raven gestured to the tray. "Eat this." Erik narrowed his eyes at her. "Don't even start, Erik. Starving yourself is not going to help Charles at all. It only ticks off the staff." Erik glared at her before returning his full attention to Charles' prone form and tightening his grip on the younger man's hand. "He'll wake up." Raven assured him. Erik nodded. When he gave no further response, she began to make her way out of the room.

"Francis?" Erik asked, stopping her in the doorway.

"There's been no change yet, but that's to be expected, considering…" Raven sighed, running a hand through her bright red hair. "It wasn't your fault." She reminded him. "None of us could've known—" Erik let out a bitter, humorless laugh that caused her to flinch slightly. "It _wasn't_ your fault." She insisted and left.

* * *

"There's still the question of how to handle Moira's return to the Agency." Darwin pointed out.

"I won't tell them anything." Moira assured the others adamantly.

"Then don't return." Logan remarked, blowing out a puff of cigar smoke. "Your bosses aren't going to take no for an answer."

"Not in the house." Raven told him, _again_, taking the cigar out of his mouth and snuffing it out as she took her seat.

"They can't force it out of me." Moira insisted.

"'Course they can." Marie countered. "That's why we've gotta give 'em a little somethin' to work with. It just can't be too much. Only enough to keep them satisfied."

"I'm listening…" Moira prompted. Marie took a bite of her toast and shrugged.

"I'll tell you when I think of somethin'"

Moira let out an aggravated huff and let her head fall forward into her arms.

"They see us all as potential threats, yes?" Azazel observed.

"Yeah." Alex put in. "But mostly you guys." Angel glared at him.

"We must do all that we can to alter their impression of our kind." Azazel continued, unbothered. "An act of good faith, to prove to them that you have kept your side of the agreement."

"We already did what we were sent to do." Sean said pointedly. "We stopped Shaw."

"A dead enemy is progress." Azazel responded solemnly. "But a captured enemy, is far more valuable." Angel tensed, her eyes widening.

"I'd really rather not." She said tightly. Azazel nodded his head in response.

"I will." He concluded, looking Moira straight in the eye.

"You're insane." Riptide told him from where he stood behind the scarlet mutant's right shoulder.

"Perhaps." Azazel admitted. "I am old and jaded, but I know that I have lived through far worse things." He turned his head to look the other man over. "And you have not." He observed, returning to his coffee.

"Are you sure?" Moira asked him seriously. She knew that he had only been working with Shaw out of necessity and not at all by choice. Azazel nodded.

"I'd rather avoid another inquisition." He replied then smiled, showing his razor-sharp teeth. "You would let us go?" He nodded toward Riptide. "He and I, we are killers. You should not let either of us walk free."

"You—" Riptide spat, pulling out a hidden blade and moving to stab the other man in the back but Logan whirled around and blocked the attack with his adamantium claws. The others leapt to their feet as well except Azazel, who continued to drink his coffee, barely batting an eyelash.

"Drop it, Bub." Logan growled. Riptide struggled against him for a second before surrendering.

"Such foolishness." Azazel remarked.

"Janos Quested, you are under arrest for multiple counts of murder and two confirmed terrorist acts." Moira announced.

"Fucking traitor!" Janos accused. Angel swallowed, avoiding his gaze as Moira cuffed him.

"I decide who I consider to be a threat." Moira told him. "Not Azazel, not even my supervisors. They make mistakes. I gave you a chance. You fucked it up. Now, be quiet."

* * *

Charles sighed and looked over at Cain. He was still talking with Sharon Xavier. Raven had come back into the water, but she currently had her back turned to him. Charles knew that he was getting pulled more and more strongly towards the center of the lake, but maybe he could just make sure to swim back to the dock before the others noticed. It wasn't any fun sticking to the dock like this and the luminous world below was calling out to him so enticingly.

He bit his lip, checking again to make sure he wasn't being watched. No. He let go of the dock and let himself drift for a moment before going under. It was truly beautiful down here. The sun was shining in through the reeds nearby, making a rhythmic, dancing pattern on the silvery-brown log beneath. He turned over to look up at the flickering surface of the water.

There was another presence nearby, so similar to his own that it hadn't registered at first. In fact, it was almost exactly the same as his own. He only noticed it because of the cool metallic impression it left, along with a taste of ozone. It was definitely another mind though. It was coming from closer to the center of the lake. He turned to look and saw a pale, slender figure suspended under the surface of the lake. The area around it was inexplicably darker and a shadow hid the other boy's face, while his jet-black locks fluttered gently in the current. He was remaining stationary somehow. _Strange._ Charles swam a little closer to investigate. The other boy was anchored. There was a fine, shining strand stretching out of the boys hand, leading back towards the shore, like a fishing line. Charles reached out and poked it experimentally. Suddenly his lungs were desperately demanding oxygen. The other boy's eyes flashed open, glowing with bright blue light and a voice reverberated, loudly through Charles head.

_**FATHER?**_

Charles surged upward gasping for breath once he reached the surface.

"Hey Charlie, is something wrong?" Raven asked as he swam hastily past her to shore. He ran right out of the water inadvertently shaking water off onto Cain.

"Jesus Christ!" Cain shouted in annoyance. "Use a towel! Use a damn towel!"

"Watch your language boy!" Kurt warned, not even sparing them a glance. Charles caught the towel that his stepbrother lobbed at his head and used it to dry himself off. The mirror that raven had brought ashore was lying at his feet, having been knocked over when Cain threw the towel.

"Someone should come play with me!" Raven called to them. Charles picked up her mirror, walking towards the adults. The familiar figure was back.

"Not happening." Cain called to Raven.

"Sorry, Love." Mrs. Xavier added, lifting her sunhat off of her face. "It's almost time to return home."

The phantom with silver eyes was watching Charles mournfully. He looked like he wanted to reach out but was somehow restricted. Charles studied him thoughtfully then glanced down at the mirror. His reflection showed a twenty four year old man now instead of the boy he should've expected to see. He glanced back up in surprise. He knew the phantom.

"Erik?" He questioned. The mirror fell from his hand as Cain grabbed his shoulder.

"Nice job, Nerd. Come on, it's time to go." He informed Charles. Everything was already all packed up and ready to go. Raven brushed past them scooping up her mirror as she sped over to join the adults. Charles frowned at Cain, then at Erik.

"Come along boys. The car has arrived." His mother called to them. Cain made an indistinct sound in acknowledgement and picked up Raven's forgotten towel. When Charles didn't answer his mother made her way back to them, still smiling warmly. "What's the matter, Darling?"

Charles swallowed down the lump forming in his throat. She looked exactly as he remembered her.

"You're dead." He said sadly. Her smile faltered. "You—You died twelve years ago." He looked from his mother back to Erik. He seamed more substantial now, and Charles realized that he was beginning to sense his mind once again. "I wish that weren't true… but all three of you have been gone for a very long time, and this—" He sucked in a sharp breath, blinking away tears. "I can't…"

"Oh… You poor thing." His mother's ghost soothed, touching his cheek. He sniffed and pulled away.

"What is this?" He demanded, stepping back. Cain caught his shoulders before he could knock into him. "I don't understand!" The lake seemed to be spreading steadily closer whenever Charles wasn't looking at it.

"Careful, Genius." Cain cautioned. Charles blinked. He couldn't recall his stepbrother ever calling him that before. He looked up at Cain curiously. "It's time to go home."

"I don't—" Charles began to argue, then got a hold of himself. The others were watching them intently. His mother's hand twitched as if she wanted to reach out and grab him but was choosing her moment.

"Now you're getting it." Cain remarked. Charles glanced at Erik again. He could now make out the silhouettes of others further into the trees. Charles licked his lips nervously and looked back up into his stepbrother's face.

"I'm sorry." He confessed. "I never meant for you to get hurt."

"I'm not real, remember?" Cain replied and shoved him forward. The other ghosts moved to grab him but Charles lunged toward Erik, grabbing him by the arms and letting himself fall through into the shade of the trees.

* * *

Erik sat bolt upright, becoming completely alert at the sound of Charles' huge gasp. The telepath snapped awake, gulping in air like a drowning man. His vivid, electric blue eyes were as wide as saucers.

"Charles!" Erik exclaimed, both shocked and relieved. "Charles, you're awake!"

"What the hell was that?!" Charles breathed roughly.

* * *

**A/N: So how'd I do?**


	2. Dead Man Walking

**Chapter 2: Dead Man Walking**

It had been two weeks since Charles woke from the strange illusion of the lake, and everything was beginning to return to normal. Moira had returned to the CIA with her two prisoners and Angel had run away the following night. She apparently preferred to take her chances on her own. Charles was rapidly recovering from his injuries, but due to permanent nerve damage in his left leg, he would most likely suffer from chronic pain for the rest of his life. He also required the use of a cane in order to walk, but he didn't mind terribly, he was relieved that this time he _could_ walk. He was far more troubled by the fact that I still remained in a deep coma that had nothing to do with any physical injury I had sustained during our mission to Cuba.

Charles sat down in the chair at my bedside, propping his cane up against the nightstand. He had gotten into the habit of doing this every day before lunch. There was never any change but he kept hoping.

"Moira is planning to check in with us tomorrow." He informed me. He held up the note as if I could see it, then returned it to his pocket. "One o'clock at Bill's diner. It's all very covert and paranoid… Naturally, Erik will be going. We can't seem to agree on who should accompany him. I'd like to, but…" He trailed off, looking at my pale, expressionless face, remembering when he'd found me suspended in the lake on the astral plane. He still wasn't sure what that meant, but it bothered him more and more each day. It seemed a strange addition to the mirage. He pushed the thought aside and looked to the doorway when he sensed Marie's mind moving closer.

"Hey." She greeted, coming to stand beside Charles. "I thought I'd find you in here. Mom sent me to get you. The contractor's arrived to talk about what new renovations we want in order to make this place more handicap-accessible."

"Well, I suppose I'd better go then." Charles responded, patting my hand before he got up out of his seat and grabbed his cane, wincing in pain just a bit. Marie bit her lip, studying him for a second before offering:

"Would you like some help on the stairs?"

"Yes. Thank you, Marie." Charles accepted after a brief hesitation. "That's very kind."

"It's nothin'." She dismissed. "It's amazin' that you still come up here as much as you do. It must hurt climbin' the stairs with that leg of yours."

"Hmm. Yes, Erik wants me to stop as well." Charles informed her drily. She flashed him an annoyed look for reading her thoughts.

"No one wants you to hurt yourself."

"I'll adjust."

"You won't need to do this the hard way at all once we get those elevators put in. No one's tryin' to belittle you, but you _are_ still healing." Marie reminded him.

"Here we are." Charles observed, changing the subject as they reached the stairs. He offered Marie his cane. She sighed and took it from him, ducking under his other arm to help steady him. He used the banister in place of his cane.

"Did you reach him this time?" Marie asked as they descended. Charles frowned.

"It's unclear."

"Pardon?"

"I can still feel his presence, but it's different. His signature feels… muffled. He seems to have retreated so deep into his own subconscious that I can't be sure whether or not I'm really getting through to him at all."

"He'll bounce back. He always does." Marie assured him. "You wouldn't even believe some of the shit—" Charles shot her a disapproving look. "—some of the _scrapes_ that he got himself into when he was younger." She amended as they reached the landing. "He ended up developin' this incredible reputation among all of the Brotherhood's enemies for bein' this unstoppable force: 'Onslaught the Abominable Menace'." She quoted, scrunching up her nose at the sound of it. Charles narrowed his eyes at her.

"That sounds terrible."

"I know, right?" Marie replied enthusiastically. "And he _was_ a menace! Augh! His ego got so inflated; he was absolutely intolerable for the next year!" Charles chuckled at that, then turned to look down the hall at Erik, who was now making his way over to them.

"I'm already aware of your disapproval, Darling." Charles responded to his unspoken thought. "But I'm perfectly fine. As you can see, Marie was kind enough to give me a hand." Erik frowned at him.

"Charles, if you continue to insist on punishing yourself in this way, I will come and carry you back down myself." Erik threatened smoothly.

"That would be very disrespectful of you, my friend." Charles replied, walking past him. "I use a cane. That hardly makes me an invalid." Marie followed behind the feuding pair, watching the battle tensely.

"Nor are you—" Erik began.

"I'd rather not do this right now." Charles cut in shortly, prompting a tense silence. Marie looked back and forth between the two men before clearing her throat uncomfortably.

"They're waiting for us in the living room." Erik stated, finally.

"I'll just go and see what Logan's up to." Marie announced.

"In the dining room." Charles informed her.

"Thanks!" She called back as she hurried off in the specified direction.

* * *

I sat in the center of the lone pool of light in an endless blackness with my legs crossed and my eyes closed. Life was currently an extreme bore, but I might as well be comfortable. I would occasionally hear others moving about in the distance, or crying, or screaming. Apparently, they weren't handling this state of astral-suspension very well. I suppose that it could be frightening, if you never paused to think. A mistake I'd observed many normals make, time and time again in my short-but-eventful life. I chose to ignore them. There was no point in letting them spoil the perfectly dreadful time that I was having.

Another astral presence flowed towards me through the darkness. I didn't react. Why should I bother? He obviously wanted me alive or he wouldn't have gone to this much trouble, and besides, one cannot see a shadow in the dark.

"You realize that you're playing with fire here." Farouk remarked. "You can't keep this up indefinitely. You're only going to tire yourself out." I continued to ignore him. "…Which is actually good for me, because it just makes you easier to mould." What is it about me that attracts all these megalomaniacal psychos? It truly is the most obnoxious thing! Ah, yes. I'm a weapon. Still… "Well, maybe I was wrong. I thought you'd be smart like your father, but at least Charlie always knew his own limits." Really? We've gotten to the shit talking already, and he calls himself a king! I felt perfectly fine as far as I could tell. I am fully capable of realizing when I'm tired, by the way, so it wasn't a case of his noticing something that I'd missed. He was just being a fucker.

"Do you know how long it's been, since you left the waking world?" He tried again. I considered this for a moment but then let the notion go. It's hard to measure time on the astral plane. It doesn't flow consistently, so usually it's best not to bother with it. "Two and a half weeks. Your parents are getting worried, especially poor Charlie. First he's crippled, then he loses a child!" My eyes snapped open.

"Is there a point to any of this?" I inquired coolly.

"You know the point, Francis. You are a _very_ special boy. I find you quite fascinating." He replied silkily. I could hear the grin in his voice. Disgusting.

"How nice for you."

"Tell me about yourself."

"Ah, so I was correct. This _is_ deeply boring. I think I shall go back to my nap now."

"You weren't napping."

"I can multitask." I announced, closing my eyes again and trying to regain full control of my temper. "Unlike most who claim that, I can do so effectively."

* * *

"You should tell her." Logan advised, as Raven jogged by the glass double doors that led out into the gardens.

"What?" Marie coughed, almost spilling her drink.

"You should tell Raven the truth."

"It's too weird. I can't do that!" She argued, shaking her head so that her long, ponytail bounced from side to side.

"Yeah, you can. Sure, it's weird, but so are we."

"That is exactly why I shouldn't. She's still young now. She doesn't even know who she is yet!" Marie insisted. Logan raised his brows. "No, _really_. She's not even completely comfortable with bein' _this _different yet, but havin' a daughter that's her own age? I'm not doin' that to her. It's too much."

"That's not your job, Kid." Logan reminded her, finishing his beer. "Just think about it." He added, patting her on the shoulder as he got up to go back to the kitchen. Marie let out a puff of air and looked out at the garden, right as Alex and Sean ran by trying to shove each other off the path.

"That's very mature." She noted sarcastically. "Who are they runnin' with anyway? Damnit!" She jumped up and ran outside to yell at them when she heard a suspicious shattering sound, followed by a small explosion.

* * *

Charles had barely gotten the contractor out the door when they heard the sound of a minor explosion from somewhere not far from the dining room. Charles closed his eyes and rubbed a hand over his forehead.

"The boys are roughhousing again." He reported long-sufferingly. "Marie's trying to handle it… Oh dear!"

"What?" Erik queried, shutting the door with his magnekinesis. Charles jumped in surprise.

"Please don't do that without warning." He requested. Erik smirked at him and gave him a peck on the check.

"I didn't mean to scare you, Schatz." He assured Charles. "Now, what's happened?"

"The boys were fighting and they accidentally blew up one of the planters. Marie then lost control of her ability while she was trying to get them to behave."

"We should go."

"No, it's alright. Raven and Logan have got it in hand." Charles assured him. "She isn't draining anyone just making objects fly about with someone's ab— Erik? Where are you going? Wait! Er—" Charles stopped and glared up the stairs at the magnekinetic's retreating back. "That's most uncivil of you!" He shouted up at him and decided to go relax in the library instead. _**~You will regret this later.~**_ He projected to Erik.

"I doubt that." Erik replied as he made his way over to his chest of drawers.

_**~I think I'll spend the night in my study again. There's still plenty of research left for me to finish.~**_Charles informed him smoothly.

Erik paused in mid motion for a second before resuming his search.

"That's petty, Charles. I'll meet you downstairs when I'm finished."

_**~My research is not petty. What are you doing anyway?~**_

"Looking for something." Erik answered unhelpfully. He didn't really feel like explaining himself to Charles. The reason for his search still made him uneasy, which was unfortunate, because due to this unease he snapped. "Get out of my head." Realizing too late what he'd just said.

_**~Now I'm **__**definitely**__** spending the night in my study.~ **_Charles concluded, his mental voice sounding hurt.

"Charles…"

_**~No. It's fine.~**_ Charles responded, clearly not fine._** ~I understand.~ **_And with that he retreated from Erik's mind completely for the first time since he'd recovered.

* * *

"Marie? Okay, just calm down. It'll be okay." Raven said as Logan herded the boys inside.

"I might be able to help." Darwin told him. Logan shook his head.

"Go on. It's almost lunch."

"Just get back! I could never control this." Marie warned, backing away until she was pressed almost painfully against the tree behind her.

"You can't expect us to just leave you out here." Raven argued stubbornly ducking a watering can just in time. Marie let out a startled shriek at the sight.

"Sorry!"

"Not your fault. Just try to focus."

"I can't!" Marie snapped getting more and more frustrated. "I told you! It doesn't—Mom!" She screamed when a large chunk of the nearby fountain suddenly burst forward to fly at Raven. The chunk of debris halted in midair before it could hit her. Erik dropped it to the ground and released his grip on Raven's arm.

"Inside. Now." He ordered simply.

"But—"

"Go."

Raven still hesitated, looking from him to Marie uncertainly but when more piping began to rip itself out of the broken fountain she finally made her retreat.

"You're fighting it." Erik observed taking a step towards Marie.

"No shit! Of course I am! What else can I do?" She snapped. Erik sighed and deflected another pipe that she had inadvertently hurled at his head.

"You need to control yourself."

"What the fuck do you think I'm tryin' to do?" Marie shot back.

"You're fighting it. Stop. Your anger and your fear will only fuel the storm."

"I can't…" Marie said fearfully, shaking her head. Erik took another step forward. "No stop! I don't wanna hurt you!"

"Then let go." Erik countered calmly. Marie looked at the chaos around them, still breathing fast. "Marie." He prompted and her gaze snapped back to him. He showed her the bullet she'd handed back to him on the beach. "I know what I'm talking about. You need to relax."

Marie squeezed her eyes shut and focused an slowing her breathing. After a few more threatening metal objects were deflected and a couple whispered swears from Marie, things gradually settled down. As the last of the flying debris fell to the ground Marie collapsed in exhaustion. Erik hurried forward and caught her before she hit the ground.

"Thanks." She mumbled tiredly into his shoulder. He let out a small sound of acknowledgement. "I didn't really expect that sorta thing from you… It was always more Charles' thing. It's weird that he didn' come out here." Erik eyed her thoughtfully. She was right. It was unlike Charles to stay back like that, especially with such an apparent lack of concern.

"But you and Raven… You were really—" Marie suddenly sat up, wide awake once more. "Oh fuck!"

"Rogue." Erik reproved.

"Holy shit! I fucked up an' called her Mom!" Marie exclaimed, standing up.

"Calm yourself."

"What? _Oh_, shit." She said and leaned back against the tree. Erik frowned at her and she blinked her big brown eyes at him innocently. "Sorry."

* * *

Both Hank and Marie ended up skipping lunch that day. Hank was still trying to figure out what was keeping me in a coma and Marie was trying to figure out how to deal with the whole mother issue. It was awkward and unusually quiet. Lucy was rather irritated when she discovered just how little everybody had eaten. Afterward, Erik and Charles retreated to the study to play chess while Raven went to find and confront her daughter. She found her in my room.

"Marie."

"Shit."

"Umm…"

"Sorry. I just… this is kinda awkward and um…" Marie stuttered, toying absently with my fingers.

"You called me Mom." Raven said, deciding it was best to get right to the point.

"Yeah, I did." Marie admitted, nodding. "It just sorta slipped out."

"So I'm not like, your Mom in the future or anything then." Raven replied, uncomfortably. "Because I mean, you two did come back from the future but you never really told us how far in the future and so maybe you could be my kid."

"Right." Marie replied freezing up.

"Right, sorry. I didn't mean to freak you out or anything, I just…" Raven shook her head and turned to go. " Never mind." Marie sat there for a moment staring at the empty doorway before snapping out of her daze and running after her.

"You are my Mom." She called after her. Sean froze at the other end of the hallway, staring at the two of them before turning and heading back the way he'd come, muttering to himself.

"This place is too weird to be high inside."

Both woman watched him go in silence before Raven turned her attention back to Marie.

"You're really my kid?" She questioned, studying Marie. Marie nodded.

"I didn't know if you'd want to know. Things were really complicated and I din' know how you'd react, so…"

"Sweetie." Raven replied coming over and pulling her into a hug. "Of course I do!" She paused coming to a realization and leaned back to smile at Marie. "I got the good kid."

* * *

"Is something the matter, my friend?" Charles inquired, breaking the silence once again.

"You are." Erik replied, studying Charles' face intently. Charles smiled.

"Am I?" He returned, sounding amused.

"Yes."

"What about me has you so distracted?"

"I'm not distracted. I am focused."

"Your chess game would suggest otherwise." Charles pointed out, gesturing to the board. "It's your move, by the way."

Erik's silver eyes flashed from Charles' hand to his face, his expression remaining perfectly neutral.

"I know." He said simply, and moved his rook into position without taking his eyes off of Charles'. Charles' brow furrowed.

"Are you alright, Erik?"

"I am." Erik confirmed. "How are _you_ feeling?"

"Wh—I feel fine." Charles stuttered. "What is this about?"

"Really?"

"Yes, really. Erik, what?"

"You've been behaving oddly."

"Have I?"

"Yes. I have never seen you so unconcerned about a friend, or even a stranger in peril. You didn't even seem to consider coming to Marie's aid earlier. You even attempted to keep me away."

"That's not how I would—" Charles began to argue.

"You didn't even mention her absence at lunch or go to discuss it with her, despite her obvious trauma." Erik continued, cutting him off. "You haven't even attempted to discuss it or Francis' condition since we began playing chess."

"Have I done something to offend you and simply forgotten?" Charles asked testily.

"You have a photographic memory." Erik returned.

"I know!" Charles snapped.

"Your hand has been shaking off and on all day now." Erik informed him, undaunted. Charles smiled tightly.

"Are you quite finished yet?"

"Just one more observation." Erik replied, leaning forward. "Doesn't this chess game look at all familiar to you?" Charles squinted at him skeptically.

"What do you mean?"

Erik simply gestured to the chessboard. Charles studied it, before looking back over at Erik with a confused expression.

"It seems sort of familiar, I guess."

"This is exactly the same as the last chess game we played together before we left for Cuba." Erik stated forcefully.

"That can't be true." Charles denied, beginning to look a little scared.

"You're considering moving your knight." Erik informed him. "Would you like me to explain where and why?" Charles paled.

"Not really." He said quietly, looking down at his shaking hand. "I-I didn't even notice." He looked down at the chessboard, trying to recall their previous game in detail. "I can't…" He could remember the night in question, but when he tried to picture the different moves, his memory grew vague and blurry. "There_ is_ something wrong with me."

"Charles…" Erik began, getting up and crossing over to kneel in front of the frightened telepath. Charles rubbed his forehead rather roughly. There was a headache building rapidly behind his eyes. "Charles." Erik grabbed his shoulders.

"My head is buzzing." Charles muttered.

"You should try to relax." Erik suggested, rubbing his shoulders in an attempt to soothe him. "This could simply be—"

"Oh yes, that's very reassuring. A result of my concussion? I've been trying to contact Francis. If I did so while suffering from brain-damage—"

"Charles!"

"There's no telling what that could've done to him."

"Calm down. You don't have brain damage." Erik insisted.

"You don't know that. I could be dangerous!"

"You _are_ panicking." Erik replied, tilting Charles' face with one hand until their eyes met. "We don't know why this is happening. It could be something benign. Whatever it is that's happened, we'll handle it."

"And if it's not…"

"I'm not going to lose you." Erik said with finality. Charles let out a shaky laugh and they shared a chaste kiss. "You'll be alright."

"Is that so?" Charles breathed leaning his forehead against Erik's.

"It is."

"Oh… Why am I so tired? I think I need to rest for a while." Charles said, closing his eyes.

"Come on." Erik said, standing and retrieving Charles cane.

"Hmm?"

"You aren't napping in your study are you?" Erik teased. Charles smiled.

"Oh. I see." He acknowledged and let Erik help him up to his room, though he still stubbornly refused to let Erik pick him up. After he lay down in bed he almost immediately fell asleep, feeling suddenly exhausted. Erik propped his cane up against the bedside table and slipped out of the room, if he'd turned his back just a moment later he would've seen the strange twitch of Charles' hand. It was almost like a clawing motion.

* * *

"And well, technically you had just arrived on the grounds, for the first time in years, as you may remember. But you were hardly yourself so I'm not entirely sure."

"Just keep pushing, Junior."

"Don't interrupt. Things are about to get interesting."


	3. And You Were There

**Chapter 3: And You Were There**

"You're saying this thing actually turned itself and its partner over to you willingly?" Director Johnson asked incredulously.

"Yes, Sir." Moira replied calmly. "He did. It's my understanding that he was forced to carry out Sebastian Shaw's orders against his will."

"And how exactly have you come to that conclusion, Agent MacTaggart?"

"One of the things that I have learned from my time working with mutants is that they are all uniquely affected by their separation from the rest of humanity." Moira explained. "Each of their mutations and the reactions they evoke from others cause differences in their behavior and their personalities-"

"Get to the point, Agent." Another of her superiors cut in impatiently.

"I am, Sir. Azazel Konstantinov is a teleporter whose mutation has allowed him incredible longevity, and that, combined with his unfortunate physical appearance, has shown him the worst side of humanity. When Shaw came to him and threatened his family, he already knew from centuries of experience that there was no one on this planet he could go to for help."

"Yes, we are aware of the supposed threat raised against the prisoner's family." Director Johnson responded, looking through the folder in front of him. "However, as a teleporter, he does pose unique problems to our security."

"I understand that, Sir." Moira agreed. "I still believe that he could prove to be a valuable asset."

"We could always sedate him." The Agent on the Director's right suggested, adjusting his reading-glasses. Moira didn't recognize him at first as he had not spoken in front of her before. "Just keep him under until we find a better way to contain him. I doubt he'd be able to teleport away in his sleep."

"Or we could just save our time and money and put it down." Another harsher voice remarked from somewhere behind the Director. "Imagine the threat that thing could pose if it got lose inside our facility!"

The quiet one looked over at him with an unimpressed expression. He was noticeably younger than Moira's other superiors, but it was clear to her he'd gotten where he was because he was clever, and found the others stupidity tiring.

"With all due respect, Sir." Moira said tensely. "Most of the mutants that I came in contact with showed no indication that they meant us any harm. Quite to the contrary, they were willing to put their lives in jeopardy in the hope that they could coexist peacefully with us—"

"Oh, please—" The man in the back interrupted.

"They are good people!" Moira persisted. "The least that we can do is remember that they _are_ people!"

"Enough!" Director Johnson cut in before the Agent behind him could retaliate. "Thank you, Agent MacTaggart. We will take your recommendation under advisement. That's all we need for now." Moira nodded stiffly and barely managed not to slam the door behind her as she left.

"Your thoughts gentlemen?" Director Johnson inquired tiredly.

"I think they're a threat."

"Yes, we're all aware of your opinion, Mr. Stryker." The youngest Agent remarked, pulling off his reading glasses. "If you'll recall, you are only here on an advisory basis. Perhaps you should let the others have a chance to speak, as it is _their_ business."

"That's Col. Stryker to you, son." Stryker snapped.

"I beg your pardon, Colonel." The other responded, sounding vaguely sarcastic.

"Back to the point gentlemen…" Director Johnson prompted.

"I think there is a significant threat involved in keeping the prisoner contained." Agent Mathews, the one sitting on Director Johnson's left pointed out.

"We could attempt to keep him sedated for the time being, as suggested." Another speculated. "But I would suggest he be kept under heavy guard nonetheless. We don't want to risk another massacre."

"Are we certain sedatives will even work on this thing?" Another questioned.

"They're just genetic freaks." Col. Stryker dismissed. "They're not magic." Director Johnson turned back to the Agent on his right, who was toying with his pen distractedly.

"Peter? Your thoughts?" He queried. The younger man's blue-grey eyes flashed up to meet his.

"All the intel. I've seen would seem to support MacTaggart's assertions." Peter replied thoughtfully. "I would suggest we hold him under sedation for now and withhold our final judgment until we have more information."

"You know what these mutants are capable of." Director Johnson pointed out, studying Peter's face.

"Which is why we should tread carefully. If they are all as powerful as we suspect them to be, we would fare better with a few of them on our side." Peter continued. Director Johnson nodded, appearing satisfied with his response.

"I agree." He concluded. "We keep the prisoner under sedation for the time being, but I want security doubled on all mutant prisoners. Now onto the next order of business, how are we coming on the location of the missing mutant assets?"

* * *

"Where's Charles?" Marie inquired as she grabbed her coat off its hook and turned back to Erik and Raven.

"He said he wasn't feeling well." Raven explained, handing Marie a beret from the shelf behind her. "Try this on. It's cute." Marie eyed the beret warily. "I'm going to force him to let Hank check him over once he wakes up again. Really, try it. It matches."

"Fine. If only so I can leave sooner." Marie surrendered, finally accepting the offered garment. "Oh, hey it's adorable. You ready to go, Erik?"

"Yes." Erik said darkly.

"Okay, we'd better leave then." Marie announced hastily. "Bye Mom." …And left.

"She's going to lose that as soon as she's out of sight, isn't she?" Raven observed.

"Most likely." Erik agreed, following the impatient young woman out the door. Raven sighed.

"Whatever. Tell Moira I said Hi." She called after him. Then after a pause, added. "And don't get arrested!"

"Good to know she's got priorities." Marie quipped. Erik smiled subtly in response. Marie looked over her shoulder asking. "She gone yet?"

"Yes."

"Good." Marie replied, pulling off the beret and tossing it in the backseat of the car as they got in.

"But I thought it was adorable." Erik teased.

"Shut up." Marie returned.

* * *

Moira looked around for any sign of a tail before she jogged across the street toward Bill's Diner. There was of course no indication that she'd been followed. She had been extremely thorough in making sure that no one did, but she couldn't shake the feeling that she was being watched. She checked one last time to be certain, before entering and heading over to Erik and Marie's booth to have a seat.

"You're late." Erik informed her by way of greeting.

"I had to be sure I wasn't tailed." Moira explained. "How's Charles?"

"He woke up." Erik replied coolly. Marie rolled her eyes.

"He's better." She elaborated. "He needs a cane now, but he's recoverin' real well considering. Raven says 'Hi' by the way." Moira smiled at her.

"What news do you have for us?" Erik prompted, still all business.

"It's pretty much what we expected." Moira admitted. "My superiors are still divided over what they're calling: 'The Mutant Problem', but there's currently a few more who are afraid of the threat your kind poses than are open to the idea of equality." She went quiet as the waitress arrived.

"What can I get you folks?" The formidable-looking brunette asked in a heavy Brooklyn accent, tapping her pad with her battered pencil.

"Nothing." Erik stated, looking out the window. Marie smiled apologetically.

"Chocolate milkshake'd be perfect, please." She said, laying on the Southern charm. "Sorry about my Uncle. He's not a real people person."

"Sure thing, Honey." The waitress acknowledged, disinterestedly, looking over at Moira. "And for you Miss?"

"Just coffee, thanks."

"Got it. That'll be out in a minute."

"Thanks." Marie returned and watched the waitress go before turning back to Moira.

"There's a new guy that's been showing up at the latest debriefings. I don't know who he is but he's trouble." Moira reported. "He always sits in the back, and he's got this huge chip on his shoulder about mutants."

"What do you know about him?" Marie inquired.

"Not much, except that he seems to know Director Johnson personally." Moira said, shrugging. "The good news is that at least two of my superiors dislike him as much as I do." She looked over at Erik, leaning a tad closer. "Hey, do you remember that younger agent? He looks like he's in his mid thirties at most." Erik narrowed his eyes as he tried to recall the man in question. "He's always really quiet and he's got that prematurely white streak in his hair?" Erik nodded.

"Yes, I remember him. He always seemed more of an observer than anything else. He didn't do much more than read from the folders whenever I was there."

"Yeah well, he finally spoke up." Moira indicated. "I think we might have a chance with him. He seemed open to my assertions about handling Azazel, and from what I can tell he hates the new consultant."

"You will tell him nothing." Erik stated firmly.

"I'm not suggesting I give him anything." Moira assured them. "I'm just proposing to see if I can get him on our side. You guys can't hide out forever. Maybe I can find you some support before you actually need to make your presence known." Erik scowled at her suspiciously, considering her point as the waitress returned to their table with Moira and Marie's orders.

"It sounds like a good idea." Marie agreed after the waitress had left. "But you need to be careful with this. You've got our future on the line. You know what might happen to us if we screw this up."

"I have some idea, yes." Moira confirmed, taking a sip of her coffee. "How's the Brat doing? Any change?"

"Nothin' yet. Hank's still tryin' to figure it out." Marie replied.

"I'm sure he will."

* * *

When she was leaving the restaurant, Moira got that strange feeling again. She paused in the doorway to look around but saw nothing unusual. She swallowed uncomfortably then crossed the street, making her way back to the subway. When Moira got to the platform, he finally came to stand beside her, as if he was just another random traveler that happened to be taking the same train. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the familiar shock of white and auburn hair peeking out from under his dark grey fedora and turned to confront him.

"So you _were_ following me." She accused evenly, mindful of the other travelers around them.

"Indeed I was." He confirmed, conversationally. "And you nearly caught me! That's not easy to do, you know. I can be extremely inconspicuous when I want to be." Moira took a deep breath, trying to reign in her temper as the other passengers began to board the train. She then reached up and yanked off his hat, apparently having failed.

"You had no right to do that." Moira snapped. "Last time I checked I wasn't under your direct command—"

"Oh, well that's due to change."

"Nor are you—What?" Moira queried, caught off guard by his remark. He held out his hand for her to shake, flashing her a cool-yet-cocky smile that seemed strangely familiar.

"Agent Frank." He informed her. "I believe you'll find we're on the same side, Agent MacTaggert. Now, I suggest we hurry up and board our train before it departs without us." They slipped onto the train just before the doors began to close and he led her over to a marginally less crowded space near the back.

"Why—" Moira began.

"Not on the train." Agent Frank reminded her.

* * *

Azazel sat quietly on his cot, watching his tail flick back and forth in front of him. He knew it was creeping out his guards, but whatever. He had to find amusement where he could. There was a resounding boom from somewhere to the right. His internal sense of placement told him that it had come from closer to the outer wall of the facility. There were yells and screams following shortly after. His guards readied their weapons and two of them went to see what was happening. More screams, and crashes and gunfire. His two remaining guards looked at each other apprehensively. Azazel stood readying for attack as he saw them backing away from something, then the door of his cell crashed inwards. There was a man that he didn't recognize standing in the doorway with Frost and a petite blonde on either side behind him. The man's eyes were jet black. He stepped aside to let Frost address Azazel.

"He wants us to join him." She reported dispassionately. Azazel looked into her eyes seriously and shook his head. "I thought so." The telepath said, narrowing her eyes at him as she focused. "I'm sorry Az but this is for your own good." She explained, putting him into a deep sleep, then she turned back to the dark eyed stranger shifting to her diamond form. "I'm with him." The man's brow furrowed and he opened his mouth, prompting Moss to flinch as the black shadow poured from his mouth toward Frost's diamond form. "Feel free to try that as long as you want. You can't touch me when I'm like this." Frost informed him coldly. "I'm with him." The Shadow King retreated into his current host and grinned at her.

"Well aren't you something new!" He observed. "I'll see you again, Miss Frost. Come along my dear." He prompted Moss grabbing her arm and leaving the way they'd come.

"What about the guards?" Moss asked shakily.

"Oh, yes. Kill all but one."

* * *

Marie wandered into the dining room that evening to find Charles sitting at the table having a cup of tea.

"Oh, hey. You're up." She greeted, plopping down into the seat next to him. He smiled wanly at her and set down his mug.

"Yes, it seems that Hank is finally done with me."

"How'd the testing go?" Marie inquired tentatively. Charles shrugged.

"We have determined that something is off about my current brain chemistry, but it is still yet to be determined what exactly that means." Charles informed her, fussing uncomfortably with his half empty mug.

"So, not much difference, then." Marie observed sympathetically. She reached out and placed a comforting hand on his. "You know we're gonna figure this out."

"Yes, of course." Charles said as Erik joined them. "How did things go with Moira?" Erik let out a noncommittal sound in response and sat on Charles' other side.

"Moira thinks she might have found us a potential ally in one of her superiors." Marie reported, trying to raise Charles' spirits.

"An ally, already?" Charles asked interestedly. "Did she say who he was?"

"She didn't mention a name yet but…" Marie trailed off, looking over at Erik.

"He sat in on a couple of our meetings." Erik explained. "The quiet one. He had a white streak in his hair and usually sat beside the Director."

"Ah, the clever one." Charles remembered. "Yes, he never spoke at all." Marie nodded, looking mildly curious at Charles' description. Erik looked at him questioningly. "Something about him made him stand out from the others." Charles elaborated. "It shouldn't have. Everything about his manner and his outward appearance suggested that he should fade right into the background, but something kept drawing my attention back to him." Charles hesitated for a moment, looking guilty. "So, I tried to scan his mind to see why that was. It gave me a bit of a headache." Erik frowned suspiciously.

"You mean…" Marie began, but Charles shook his head adamantly.

"No. Nothing like Moss." Charles assured them. "His thought patterns were just rather unusual… Cacophonous."

"Gesundheit." Marie deadpanned, causing Erik to raise an eyebrow at her before turning his attention back to Charles.

"Cacophonous?" He echoed, looking mildly amused. Charles sighed.

"To say that the man had a lot on his mind would be a grave understatement." Charles replied, adding thoughtfully. "It will be interesting to see where this leads."

* * *

Moira walked out of the station behind Agent Frank, still feeling a bit puzzled by his recent behavior.

"Do try to keep up, Agent MacTaggart." He called over his shoulder as he glided briskly down the steps and proceeded to hail them a cab. She jogged round the back and slipped into the backseat beside him. "Thank you." He acknowledged, then leaned forward to speak quietly with the driver and hand him a wad of cash.

"So, why did you follow me?" Moira inquired, as they began to move.

"Parlez-pas en anglais." Agent Frank responded simply. (Not in English.)

"Pourquoi est-ce que vous me suiviez?" Moira amended. (Why did you follow me?)

"Je suivais un presentiment." Agent Frank replied. (I was following a hunch.)

"Un presentiment de quell circonstance?" (About what?)

"J'avais l'impression que vous et moi serions en accord à l'égard de la meileure approche au 'problème mutant'." Agent Frank explained. "Les autres sont trops preoccupés au vision du peril mutant…" (That you and I are in agreement on how we should handle the so called 'mutant problem'. The others are too caught up in viewing them as threats.)

"Mais vous n'etes pas d'accord avec eux?" (But you disagree?)

"Les mutants sont dangereux, bien sûr," Agent Frank said impatiently. "Mais généralment, plus que nous les traitons comme un danger, plus qu'ils deviendront dangereux. Je m'intéressse aux allies mutants potentiaux." (They are threats. But for many of them, that is only the case because we treat them as such. I am more interested in potential mutant allies.)

"Ce n'est pas possible pour eux de considerer un alliance avec sûrété en ce moment." Moira pointed out. (It isn't safe for them to consider that at the moment.)

"Non, mais peut-être nous duex ensemble pouvons changer ça." (No, but perhaps together we can change that.)

* * *

Erik was jolted awake that night by Charles' restless thrashing. _Just what he needs. Another nightmare._ Erik sighed and sat up, grabbing a flailing arm before it could accidentally backhand him in the face. He took hold of Charles' shoulder and began to attempt to wake him. It was a bit depressing how quickly he had gotten used to this.

"Charles, wake up."

"No…" Charles murmured, still struggling against an invisible foe.

"You're just dreaming, Schatz." Erik tried again. "Just wake up."

"No…" Charles repeated, sounding more distressed. "H's 'ere…"

"Shhh. You're alright."

"He's here!" Charles repeated more clearly, jolting awake. "No!" Erik grabbed Charles' arms as he lurched forward, breathing fast.

"Charles! Relax, you are perfectly safe." Erik assured him. Charles looked up at him with saucer-wide eyes.

"He isn't!" He whispered helplessly. Erik frowned at him, but before he could ask what he meant there was a resounding boom from downstairs. "Francis!" Charles choked out, then looked at Erik gravely. "Run." It only took Erik a split second to react, running out of the room and sliding down the banister on his way to their son's room.

"Erik, what—?" Raven tried to ask as he rushed past, but he ignored her. She bit her lip, exchanging a WTF look with Hank who was watching from the doorway to his own room, before starting after him. "Stay with Charles." She told Hank in a 'do-it-well-or-I-will-shave-you' tone, before breaking into a run. It only took her a second to catch up. "Erik?" She questioned, as they saw the massive hole where the locked entryway used to be. "What d—" Erik slapped a hand over her mouth as they heard someone who sounded rather heavy stalk by on their way to the others' sleeping quarters. They crept quietly closer and caught sight of a very formidable looking, dark figure jogging up the opposite staircase. Erik slid to a stop at the bottom of the staircase and reached out with his magnekinesis, hoping to pull the intruder back and away from the children's rooms. He took hold of the metal in the other's clothing and pulled. The figure slid down a couple of steps, then grabbed the banister, looking over his shoulder to survey the new annoyance, with jet-black eyes.

"What the fuck?" Marie exclaimed from farther down the hall. Alex and Darwin weren't far behind her.

"Stay back!" Raven warned as the intruder smiled down at them and began to pull himself back up the stairs with incredible strength. Disturbingly, Erik actually got pulled forward a foot or two.

"Holy shit!" Logan observed, extending his claws. The intruder reached out determinedly and grabbed a large antique vase off its stand hurling it at Erik's head, in order to break his concentration.

"Look out!" Raven shouted and knocked him out of the way before it could crack his skull open. Logan charged forward and stabbed their attacker in the shoulder. He flinched in pain, but just grabbed Logan by the throat and shoved him into the wall, knocking him out, then dropped him carelessly to the floor.

"Alex!" Marie prompted, ducking into my bedroom. Alex's chest was already glowing red with built up energy. He let off a burst of plasma, but the intruder charged through the wall into my room and out of his line of sight. Alex stopped his attack. He wasn't willing to risk hitting one of us. Raven and Erik ran after him and froze when they saw what he was doing.

"You really do put up a fight, don't you?" The Shadow King remarked casually. He already had me draped over his shoulders. Marie was lying on the floor at his feet with one heavy boot resting on her head.

"Let them go." Raven said murderously. Erik raised his hand and all of the metal in the room began to shake threateningly.

"Sorry Chickie, but I can't do that." The Shadow King returned, eyeing Erik thoughtfully.

"Chickie?" Raven whispered, caught off guard by the old nickname.

"Really Mr. Lensherr, what do you expect to happen here?" Farouk asked, incredulously. "You can't kill me! You know that, and I know you don't want to kill my host. I'll just take another. You plan on killing all of them, too?" Erik cried out in frustration and released his hold on the metal. "You have a choice now. I'm taking one of them. What do you think, Dear?" Farouk added, turning his attention back to Raven and patting my limp form lightly. "It's this one, isn't it? I know you. You still need one brother."

"Who are you?" Raven demanded furiously, taking a step forward.

"Ah!" The Shadow King cautioned, his eyes flicking to the boot still resting on her daughter's head. "Today you can call me Cain."

"That's impossible! Cain's dead!" Raven shouted. The Shadow King shifted his stance so they could see his host's face. It was you, of course.

"I'm going to go now, and you are not going to stop me." Farouk stated simply. "If you come after me, I will crush him, and then take his Daddy instead. So you won't." He scrutinized Raven and Erik's faces to make sure that his threat had sunk in, then made his way over to the balcony. He paused before he jumped to add. "And Charles _will _return to normal. The next bit's just to keep you busy for a little while. …Sorry about your walls." A moment of stunned silence followed his jump from the balcony. It lasted less than a minute, broken by Charles' pained scream.


	4. As You Were

**Chapter 4: As You Were**

**Seattle, Washington: Abandoned Docks, Depopulated Sector; 2010**

"Francis!" Dad greeted as Nightcrawler set me down on a nearby worktable in what appeared to be an abandoned warehouse of some sort. It was dark. Night time? And the area we were in was lit by a few gas lanterns hung here and there from bits of worn rope. The teleporter nodded to Dad as he rolled his chair over to the table, then disappeared in another puff of blue and black smoke. Presumably going to assist, or rescue his sister.

"Father." I acknowledged, lying back on the rough, wooden tabletop as he searched me for injuries.

"What have they done to you?"

"I'll live. Listen, Vater betrayed your X-men."

"We suspected that he would." Dad replied grimly, pushing me back down when I tried to sit up. "Lie still, please." He touched his temple, calling out to someone elsewhere in the warehouse to assist him, I didn't see who it was. I had already passed out again by the time they arrived.

* * *

When I woke back up, it was daytime already and Marie was sitting on a beaten wooden bench pushed up against the wall to my left, cleaning her gun. She had a split lip and a nasty bruise under her right eye, but other than that, she seemed the same as ever, maybe slightly pricklier.

"You made it." I observed, taking advantage of the grey light streaming in through the broken windows above to take in our surroundings in full detail.

"'Course I did. Pete's an asshole, but he ain't a killer." Marie replied, her accent heavier than usual. Yep, she was angry. That usually indicates that she's really, very angry.

"He _isn't_ a killer." I corrected, despite my better judgment.

"Say Tuesday." She challenged.

"Shut up." I retorted weakly. Her expression softened.

"It's good to see that you're doin' better." She told me and we dropped into a comfortable silence. I could hear others moving around deeper into the warehouse. There were seagulls outside and the lapping of water. Terminal City. I knew exactly where we were now.

"What did he do?" I asked, finally breaking the silence.

"Magneto tried to take out the other synthetic-mutants…" Marie informed me, pausing to try and gauge my reaction before she continued. "He trashed the base and stole a fuck-load of supplies, and weaponry too. Most of us got out alright but…" I skimmed her thoughts for the rest, then flopped back on the tabletop. She flinched in misplaced sympathy. As if I could feel it.

"I'm sorry about Bobby." I told her blandly. Marie sighed and shook her head.

"Its not your fault, Cuz." She reminded me. "You just focus on gettin' better." She looked up as Storm and Logan entered our section through the mismatched cloth dividers that separated us from the other parts of the abandoned warehouse.

"Rogue, Mystique is looking for you." Storm said as she walked up to the opposite side of my table.

"Right. Excuse me." Marie said getting up. I lifted my hand and let it fall back down in a lazy wave as she left.

"How's Beast?" I inquired. Logan silently crossed the room to lean against the wall and observe us, while Storm prepared a syringe with some antibiotic.

"He's recovering well." She responded, taking hold of my arm. "Okay, hold still."

"Ouch." I deadpanned.

"Cute." She remarked with a small smile dropping the empty syringe into a cardboard box beneath the table. "Just try to get some rest. I'll be back to check on you in a little while." I nodded my assent.

"Why not? I've got nothing better to do." I said lightly. She patted my shoulder, glancing curiously at Logan before ducking back through the cloth hangings. Logan waited until he was sure she was gone then pulled a rusted old folding chair up to my opposite side. "Oh, dear." I observed wryly.

"I know what you're thinking, Brat." Logan informed me seriously. "Don't do it."

"I'm sure I've no idea to what you're referring."

"We all know Magneto won't back down—"

"I'm too valuable an asset to leave in your hands." I agreed in a neutral tone. Logan scowled at me.

"Don't do anything stupid."

"Like, say: running off before he comes for me and saving all your hides?" I elaborated, smirking. "I never realized that you saw me as such a hero."

"Listen, Brat. We can help you." Logan shot back. "Just try sticking around for a change."

"Leck mich." I replied and rolled over so that my back faced him. (Go fuck yourself)

"You aren't proving a thing, Kid." He finished, and left to go have a smoke.

* * *

It took a week for me to recover enough that the others stopped hovering. I waited until they relaxed their watch on me. I wrote my letter to Dad requesting that he and his X-men refrain from following me, although I knew that wouldn't stop them. The next night I left. I needed to disappear completely before Vater and his Brotherhood could pick up the trail. Despite what Logan thought, I knew better than to risk another confrontation. Neither group could afford to clash at present, and I needed them both. Luckily, by now I had friends in low places. It wouldn't take me much effort to become a ghost.

* * *

"He's not with the X-men." Pyro reported exhaustedly, plopping down into one of the old, worn, comfy chairs in the corner of Vater's office to watch Pietro bouncing my favorite red rubber ball off the edge of Magneto's desk and catching it over and over.

"He ran?" Vater inquired, frowning in annoyance at my older brother. Pyro shrugged his ignorance, his eyes continuing to follow the toy.

"I can check in with some more of my contacts." Pietro offered, looking askance at Wanda as she strolled into the room.

"He's gone underground." She concluded. "Literally."

Pietro rolled his eyes at that, continuing his movements.

"You're certain." Vater asked, then glared at Pietro when the ball flew by in front of his face. "Hör auf damit!" (Stop that!)

Pietro paused, his cool gaze meeting Vater's before he pointedly resumed the obnoxious behavior, throwing it harder now, so that the table vibrated with every impact.

"It's what he would do." Wanda said simply, ignoring her twin's vindictive behavior for the moment to focus on the task at hand. "You and Fluke share a few contacts in the underground don't you, Pietro?"

"I'll see what I can do." Pietro replied. Vater leaned over his desk and caught the ball, looking pointedly at his misbehaving offspring. Pietro stood watching Vater return to his own seat with an unreadable expression.

"Don't lose that. It belongs to little brother." He requested before zipping off to check with our contacts. Vater sat back in his chair and regarded the toy thoughtfully.

"We'll find him." Wanda assured him.

"What are the odds?" He asked evenly. Wanda hesitated for a second before answering.

"According to my knowledge, there's an 80% chance that we'll find him and a 67% chance that we get him back." She reported. Vater's silver eyes flicked up to meet hers.

"67%" He echoed sharply. Pyro got up and headed for the door.

"Okay, that's my cue to go." He muttered, adding. "Family shit…" as he left the office. Wanda waited for an awkward moment while he shut the door behind him, then resumed speaking.

"Based on what I know, yes, 67 is accurate." She explained, crossing her arms over her chest defensively. "Why is Pietro so cross with you?"

"We are at war." Vater replied. "I did what was necessary."

"What did you do?"

"Do not use that tone with me."

"One of your sons clearly disapproves of your actions." Wanda pursued. "What makes you think that the other won't feel exactly the same?"

"Because he is like me." Vater said simply. "He will understand."

"65%" Wanda amended, studying his face. "He's Xavier's son too." She turned to leave, but paused in the doorway to add. "You know, if you were really so certain that you've done the right thing, you wouldn't feel the need to hide it."

**San Francisco, California: December 2010**

I was on my way to check in with Badger when I noticed the familiar presence nearby. I switched direction, turning right at random down the next alley. Two steps in, however, and…

"HeyFlukedon' 'sjustme." Said the red and grey blur shooting past me, splashing me with rainwater as he went.

"Ugh." I responded, wincing slightly as he halted a few meters ahead of me. "Don't speed-talk. It's too weird." Pietro just continued to look down at me expectantly. "I'm not going with you." I informed him, resuming my walk down the alley. He fell into step with me, shoving his hands in his pockets.

"I thought as much." He admitted. I raised an eyebrow at him. "You heard what Vater did?" He prodded.

"The other synthetics." I confirmed. Pietro winced.

"He didn't succeed. I didn't want to help him… I shouldn't have helped him."

"But he's our Father and you're sentimental." I finished.

"I choose not to argue on that point."

"…Because you _are_." I pushed tonelessly. Pietro surveyed our surroundings as we left the alley, coming out only a half a block down from the Black Market. Yeah I know what you're thinking. What can I say, the Underground likes puns, especially misleading puns. It's essentially your average street market, as legal as anything else these days. It also doubled as a security system for the Underground and anyone under their protection, because to get to us you had to pass through the market, and all the vendors doubled as a watchdog for the mutant powers that be that ran our little hidey-hole. An elderly vender in the nearest booth eyed my brother suspiciously. He smiled and winked at her and paused to do a little mock bow when we reached her stall. She watched me with interest before addressing him.

"You want some fish, Boy?" She asked in an ancient, gravelly voice. I smiled at her but stayed out of it.

"No thank you, Ms. Kincaid." Pietro replied. "You know that, anyway. I'm not here to cause any trouble." She scoffed.

"You _are_ trouble, Quicksilver." Ms. Kincaid returned, wiping a bit of dirt off her silvery cheek with the back of her hand. "I knew your Father when he was just starting the trouble. You don't stick around him if you aren't in on it."

"I'm just here to see my brother, I promise." Pietro assured her. Kinkaid squinted at him suspiciously, then shifted her gaze to me. I shrugged.

"Fine. You'll stay within the market." She decided. Pietro nodded his agreement. "You should know by now what happens to you if you cross one of us."

"Of course." Pietro confirmed and patted my shoulder as he began to lead the way farther into the marketplace. "So, you're one of them now."

"For now." I admitted.

"You chose this route to limit my options. You don't trust me. Why?"

"I trust you." I corrected, stepping aside to let another vendor wheel a handcart by between us. "Within reason." A muscle in Pietro's jaw tensed.

"And when, exactly, did I begin to merit a buffer-zone?" He asked tightly.

"Vater sent you here to find me. Whether or not you agree with his choices, you still carry out his will and he wants his bio-weapon back." Pietro stopped and frowned down at me in surprised offense. It began to rain again, chasing some of the less robust travelers nearby into the shelter of the cracked and dilapidated buildings on either side of us.

"He wants to be sure you're safe. You're his child, not his weapon." He insisted. It was my turn to scoff.

"And _that's_ why you're a threat. You're so determined to hope." I observed. "Dad made the same mistake. I'm a bio-weapon. A powerful one and despite what he says, Magneto will insist in my allegiance not for my protection, but because I am too valuable to leave in anyone else's reach."

"That's not true. You make him sound like a monster!"

"No. He's a zealot." I amended. "It's different."

"Francis!"

"He tried to kill off all the others like me!" I shot back, my anger finally breaking through. "He betrayed my friends, _our_ friends. The people that he claims to fight for! He's not behaving like a man who cares about me. He is behaving like a terrorist!" Pietro stared at me, uncertain of what to say. I kept talking anyway. "He may say that he cares, maybe he even believes it, but I don't. I choose my own battles. I am not his toy." I straightened my posture and collected myself, recovering my blank, expressionless appearance once more and turned back toward Mercury's Fishing Stall. "Feel free to let him know."

"Francis, wait…" Pietro called after me, sounding as concerned as he ever got. How touching.

"Goodbye, Pietro." I responded with finality, not bothering to look back at him.

* * *

I stayed a couple more weeks in relative peace in the underground before they began to feel the repercussions of my rejection. Vater sent Pyro, Sabretooth and Wanda to press the issue, clearly not having taken the news well at all. I neglected to surface that day. My telepathic bond with Wanda allowed me to feel them coming long before they neared the marketplace. I stayed underground reading a book that I'd stolen from an exceptionally rude customer of Angel's bartering yurt the previous evening, and waited for the warning system to trip.

"They're coming for you, Onslaught." Vulcan warned me as he entered my car of the long abandoned passenger-train. The Underground itself is actually a network of abandoned subways and escape tunnels left over from Prohibition.

"How insistent are they?" I asked without looking up from my book. He shrugged.

"We can take 'em." He said and the temperature in the subway-car rose marginally. That got my attention.

"They're pushing for a fight?" I said, closing my book and sitting up.

"The Scarlet Witch is being characteristically well-mannered, but the other two are beginning to cause some trouble." Vulcan assessed. "It looks like Magneto isn't interested in taking no for an answer."

"That wouldn't be his style." I remarked. Vulcan let out an amused snort.

"It's your call, Xavier. We'll keep them busy for a while but your window is gonna close in a half an hour. Destruction is bad for business." He told me before leaving to help the others. I closed my eyes and accessed Wanda's mind though our link. No need to announce myself. She'd know I was coming, and if not, even better.

She was inside Angel's yurt. Pyro and Sabertooth were arguing with Angel, which I thought seemed unwise. Badger was sitting on the stool to her right behind the counter, readying to grab her rifle from beneath it if necessary. Vulcan and Juggernaut walked in. Wow, they must really be pissing people off. Cain usually stayed out of the market unless there was a threat of violence.

_**You about done, Fluke?**_ Wanda inquired patiently. _**The others are going to spot you soon.**_ As she thought the last bit, Angel looked over at us and raised one wizened eyebrow at me before shifting her attention back to my ex-associates.

_**Nearly, finished.**_ I replied casually, watching as Sabretooth began growling and bullying the two shop owners. He knocked a piece of pottery off the table to his right, causing Wanda to jump.

"You break it, you buy it." Angel told him, sounding unimpressed. From Wanda's mind I gathered that they had already created a rather destructive disturbance out in the marketplace when Mercury refused to speak with them. Pietro was absent as he had had a nasty falling out with our father shortly after returning from our meeting at the Black Market. He'd blurred out of Magneto's headquarters at the finish and hadn't come back since.

"Listen, just tell us where to find him." Pyro snapped. "He must have haunts outside your territory. The kid's a wanderer. Just give us something to work with and we'll leave you alone."

"Do I look like a sellout to you?" Angel retorted. "People come here to disappear. Where they go from here is between them and their god. You hear me?" Sabertooth growled louder. Simpleton. The look Cain shot him seemed to indicate he thought so as well. Pyro straightened up and eyed the floor, seemingly at a loss.

"You got business for the market, John?" Vulcan inquired, coolly.

"You know why we came." Sabertooth replied for him.

"Then get the hell out of my tent." Angel replied smoothly. "You're fucking up the atmosphere."

I retreated from Wanda's consciousness before the others could take notice of her glowing eyes. I was already all packed up and ready to go. By the time that the others could enter the train-car to check on me, I was gone. I spent a short time out on the street before I folded and headed for the safe-house.

**Vancouver, Canada: Millbrook Lake; January 7, 2011**

I jogged across the frost-covered lawn, over to the old, weathered Victorian style house. I could see my breath this morning and had a hunch that this morning the air might be too cold for me to hang about outside, even with my custom-made, black duster to keep me warm. I slid across the wet, mostly exposed wood of the porch and pulled the screen door open. It promptly fell off. I watched it fall and rolled my eyes, trying the door. It was unlocked. I let myself in and strolled through the grey and white entryway, glancing briefly up the stairs and noting the peeling paint and water-stained wallpaper before making my way to the living room. Pietro was sitting on the dusty-looking, sky-blue couch, bouncing my red rubber ball off the opposite wall and catching it over and over again. There was a half empty box of Chinese takeout sitting on the floor beside him, and another sitting on the scratched, brown-leather recliner to his left.

"Hey Fluke." He greeted, tossing me my ball as I crossed the room to sit on the only other piece of furniture, picking up the box of sticky rice and setting it next to the other one.

"I love what you've done with the place." I remarked. Pietro grinned at me.

"A work in progress." He replied. I smiled back at him, tossing the ball up into the air and catching it.

"A work in progress…" I echoed thoughtfully. "I think I can take that."

**San Francisco, California: Black Market; January 13, 2011**

"Listen, I understand that this is asking for a lot, but you know that the Professor wouldn't have sent us here if it wasn't extremely important." Storm insisted, looking imploringly into Mercury's dark eyes.

"We don't know where he went." The older woman informed her. "The people who pass through here don't leave forwarding addresses. It's part of the deal."

"We know." Storm said, glancing over her shoulder at Marie, who was standing a short distance away watching the passing foot traffic. "We're tracking down all of his known contacts. We need to get word to him. Some very bad people are coming after Francis and if there is any way to warn him…" Storm trailed off, feeling an odd sensation like time had skipped a few seconds. Marie ran up to the booth and grabbed her arm.

"It's Tempus! He's here!" She alerted them, drawing her gun as she searched the crowd for any sign of their approaching foe. Storm touched the comm. link in her ear, attempting to contact Mystique and Wolverine who'd gone over to Angel's yurt.

"No guns in the market." Mercury told Marie simply.

"Listen lady, when you see what this guy can do you won't even notice the pistol." Marie replied. Storm turned back to them, looking worried.

"Comm.s are jammed." She reported, looking back and forth between the other two women.

"It's the technopath. Their tryin' to split us up." Marie observed. Storm nodded.

"I know. …Holster the gun." She ordered decisively.

"What?"

"It'll only make things worse for us with this many innocent bystanders. He's too fast." Storm explained. They jumped as time skipped again and Tempus popped into existence at the front of the crowd with a predatory smirk, staying just long enough for Marie to take aim before disappearing once again.

"Marie." Storm prompted sternly.

"Fuck!" Marie swore, holstering her gun. Clouds began to form above the market and Storm's eyes turned milky-white as she drew on her mutant power. Tempus suddenly appeared behind her and pressed a razor-blade to her throat.

"I don't think so." He remarked with a characteristically manic grin on his pasty face. "Now, what were you girls on about? Let me guess… 13?"


	5. New Beginnings

**Chapter 5: New Beginnings**

It had taken a half an hour for anyone to reach Charles. He'd been projecting pain out into the hall, so strong that it had caused Hank to lose consciousness within minutes. Even Darwin, whose adaptive mutation allowed him slightly more resistance only managed to get to the door before he gave up. By now we all know how insanely stubborn Eric can be, so it shouldn't surprise you that he managed to reach Charles, eventually, out of sheer force of will.

The second that Erik touched his face, Charles' painful projections abruptly ceased. He breathed out a deep sigh and his trembling body stilled.

"Charles?" Erik asked, once he'd gotten his breath back. Charles remained completely motionless. "Charles! Can you hear me?" Erik persisted, patting one colorless cheek.

"Yes. Shh…" Charles whispered in reply, not bothering to open his eyes. "Too loud."

"Seriously?" Sean questioned breathlessly from the doorway.

"Shut up." Erik snapped. Charles laughed weakly.

"Manners, Darling." He gasped, then rubbed a hand roughly over his face. When it became a clawing motion, Erik reached out and grabbed it.

"No, Schatz. Stop…" He muttered, taking hold of both the telepath's hands when Charles tried to persist.

"He's gone!" Charles murmured. "I can't… He's gone!"

"I know. We'll find him. I'll get him back, I promise." Erik assured him, straining to keep hold of the other mutant as he struggled and thrashed against him. "Darwin."

"No!" Charles exclaimed, still squirming and bashing himself into the headboard as the other two rushed over to help Erik. "No! You don't—He's gone! I can't feel him! He's gone." Charles finished, finally succumbing to the stress and slumping bonelessly against Erik's shoulder. Erik stared down at him in shock as Charles' full meaning sunk in.

* * *

"Agent MacTaggart, what are you doing here?" Agent Fuller said as Moira entered the damaged holding facility.

"She's with me." Agent Frank replied disinterestedly, holding the door for her as they stepped into the main hall.

"Since when?" Agent Fuller scoffed. Agent Frank continued past him, barely sparing him a glance.

"Since this morning." He answered, pulling out his badge and showing it to the soldiers posted at the doors to the interrogation suite. Moira glanced over her shoulder at the military personnel walking past them toward the medical wing.

"One of the mutant prisoners was injured?" She guessed.

"The red one." Agent Fuller confirmed. "He's fallen into some kinda pseudo-coma."

"Another telepath is responsible then, Farouk perhaps?" Agent Frank theorized, stopping at the next doorway while Fuller punched in the security code. "That's a bit redundant now, isn't it?" Fuller gave him a withering look as the reinforced door released to let them into the crime scene.

"Watch it, Peter." Fuller told him. "Director Johnson might be a fan of yours but that doesn't make you immortal."

"Of course not, Mark." Agent Frank returned pleasantly, surveying the damage done to the outer wall. Moira could swear she heard him add. "The theory of relativity does." Under his breath, but she couldn't be certain. She and Agent Frank both looked up as one of the soldiers jogged up to them.

"Sir, the prisoner's ready for her interrogation." He reported respectfully.

"Thank you, Son. In that case I guess we'll see her now." Fuller replied. Agent Frank straightened up and flashed the captain a smile not dissimilar to the one he'd graced her with in the New York Subway the previous afternoon.

"By all means, Captain Kinkaid, lead the way." He prompted charmingly, and gestured in front of him with one hand. "After you, Agent MacTaggart."

* * *

I was being kept in a vast basement. I left my body in order to explore my surroundings unobserved. My body was lying on a basic, metal, twin-sized bed inside a recently constructed, iron cage built into the far corner of the basement. The very edge of the stairs was barely visible from my latest prison. I nearly jumped at the unexpected sound from close behind me, then looked over my shoulder to see…

"Oh, you have got to be bloody kidding me!" I remarked incredulously at the sight of my wee cell mate. A little Asian girl was curled up on the floor a few feet from my bed with her back pressed against the wall. She couldn't have been much older than six or seven years old and was understandably terrified by her predicament. "What could he possibly want with you?" I thought aloud, kneeling down next to her to study her more closely. She sniffed quietly, eyeing my unconscious body, completely oblivious to my perusal. "…So you're not a telepath." I observed. "She can't be a weapon, can she? She's so… tiny." I reached out to poke her shoulder experimentally, and let out a startled shout as an unexpected surge of electrical charge threw me violently away upon contact, sending me right back into my body. "Mother fucker!" I shouted as I jolted into consciousness. The little girl screamed in surprise, scrambling away to push her back against the bars of the cage. "Not you." I informed her more calmly. She just continued to stare at me, wide eyed as I stood and stretched. "Well, at least that's one mystery solved." I noted, beginning to pace as I mulled things over. So she was here as a weapon of sorts, someone whose ability would subdue me if I attempted to transition, and a human shield of sorts, I suppose. Most people would be unwilling to risk a child's safety for the sake of their own survival. He was probably betting that I'd take after Charles in that regard. I paused to look down at the child again. "Um… What's your name?" She stared mutely up at me. "Okay… I'm Francis, or Onslaught, and you?" She just continued to stare. "…don't talk." I concluded. "Fine. Whatever, I like that. Good for my thinking process."

I was about to resume pacing when I felt someone coming closer, and instead moved over to sit comfortably on my bed. "Incoming." I reported half-heartedly. The little girl looked uncertain for a moment but then crossed the cell to stand next to me when she heard the two approaching. One was large and heavy, stumbling a bit as they descended. The other was closer to average size for a man and was clearly more dominant. We caught only a fleeting glimpse of the two as they passed, but I did note the black eyes of the smaller man and the amused look on his face when he glanced over at us. We sat in silence for a time, occasionally hearing shouts or banging from elsewhere in the large basement and at one point a muffled cry of pain. Then the Shadow King deigned to see us. Oh joy.

"Francis Xavier. Awake at last. You took your time there, didn't you?" He remarked. He was wearing a young, moderately-attractive, Caucasian male today. His well groomed appearance and neatly-styled, light brown hair indicated a higher class. Not as wealthy as Dad's family perhaps, but definitely well off.

"Was there a rush?" I replied tonelessly, no longer bothering with facial expressions. He wasn't worth the effort.

"Now Francis, I know you're feeling cross, but we _don't_ need the attitude."

"We?" I echoed. The child was watching our exchange intently. I got the impression that she was judging our characters before she made any moves.

"I'm offering you a great opportunity. You can be my ally here, or things are going to get rather unpleasant for you. You_ are_ going to help me." Farouk said easily. "It'll be a lot easier on all involved if you just accept my kind offer." He eyed the little girl meaningfully.

"When I hear one, I'll consider it." I replied.

"You have so much potential. With your abilities and my knowledge we could—" Farouk began.

"Dare I say: 'rule the world'?" I quipped disinterestedly. It isn't as if he was the first one to consider it. I'm like catnip for psychopaths. They just can't stay away. The Shadow King's charming façade faltered and he looked down at me like a disapproving parent.

"This is serious, Junior. You might want to begin treating it as such." He rebuked. The blackness steamed out of his eyes in little wisps along with that statement, only to flow right back into them as he turned to go. "I'll give you time to think it over. I strongly suggest that you do." He called back to me, and with that he ascended the stairs and left us alone again.

"Wanker." I said simply and lay down on my bed, trying to get comfortable. The little girl squinted at me warily before climbing up to sit on the foot of the bed. I silently scooted over to give her space and began to consider my options. I had to figure out an escape. Soon.

* * *

"Miss Frost, according to the lone survivor of the incident last night—"

"The prison-break. Yes, I know. I was seen walking through the prison with Moss." Emma Frost finished for Agent Fuller. Her cool blue eyes watched him from where she sat chained securely to the other side of the bolted down metal table.

"And the intruder that assisted her escape." Fuller added curtly.

"Yes, well we had just watched him charge straight through a reinforced, concrete wall." Frost replied, undaunted. "I didn't see the merit in challenging him. He made it clear that he wasn't interested in harming me as long as I cooperated."

"And what did he request of you?" Agent Frank inquired. Frost's gaze flickered over him with slightly more interest, almost smiling at him for a fleeting second before she continued.

"He wanted me to show him the other mutant prisoners. Janos was more than happy to join him, as I'd expected. He went to guard the opening and I brought the other two to meet Azazel." Frost explained. "The intruder was here to recruit us… _Acquire_ us might be a more fitting word, but he wasn't going to open with that, was he?"

"What do you mean by that?" Fuller queried, frowning inquisitively at their prisoner.

"The intruder was a somnambulist." Emma responded with a shrug. "He wasn't even bothering to mask it."

"A what?" Fuller questioned, confused.

"It's telepath slang." Agent Frank explained. "Used to refer to a person who's being controlled." Emma Frost raised one graceful eyebrow at him in a subtle show of approval.

"Telepath slang?" Fuller demanded, looking him over incredulously.

"It was in the file." Agent Frank dismissed, not quite managing to hide his irritation. "Why did you remain?"

"I don't associate with puppet masters. It's too wretched for my tastes." Frost replied. "I wasn't going anywhere with that thing. Azazel agreed. So I waited with him."

"You passed up a chance to escape. Just like that." Fuller remarked, not buying her explanation in the least.

"What would be the point?" Frost returned.

"You're afraid of him." Agent Frank observed, studying her face.

"I felt it. What he is. He isn't human anymore." Frost told him leaning across the table to stare grimly into his eyes. "He's not even one of us. I saw him. He was _inside_ the other mutant. If you had any sense at all, you'd fear him too." Agent Frank sat up straighter and turned to look over his shoulder at the two-way mirror behind him. On the other side, Moira swallowed nervously.

"Amahl Farouk." She observed, with a grim nod. "The Shadow King is back in play."

* * *

Charles walked quietly into the dining room to find Erik was still there. Raven had left at some point to be replaced by Hank and Marie. They were conversing in hushed tones when Charles entered but went abruptly silent when they noticed him.

"Professor, you're up!" Hank observed. "How are you feeling?" Marie and Erik both flashed him unimpressed looks at that remark. Charles just ignored it as the poor attempt at obfuscation that it was.

"What's all this? Erik? I thought you'd all be busy training by now." Charles inquired, suspiciously.

"We finished early today." Marie informed him, trying to look innocent.

"We're just going over a few things." Erik said smoothly, regarding Charles in that relaxed, unfaltering way he used when he was being dishonest. It would fool anyone who didn't know him well and even a few who did, but Charles could always spot it.

"I don't want the children involved." Charles told him, continuing past them to the kitchen. Lucy appeared in the doorway before he reached it.

"Your tea will be out shortly, Sir." She announced with a respectful nod, then turned and headed back into the kitchen.

"We asked to help." Marie insisted.

"Marie." Erik warned.

"It's true. Besides, technically, I'm older than you… and Hank's no infant neither." Marie argued. Charles cringed almost imperceptibly.

"Either." He corrected under his breath. Marie smiled at that.

"I _knew_ he got that from you." She observed, looking a bit lonely at the reminder.

"So annoying." Raven commented from the kitchen doorway, taking a bite of her cookie. Marie blinked big puppy-dog eyes up at her and she casually tossed her the other cookie.

"Thanks." Marie said, catching it and taking a bite. Hank looked over at Raven's now empty plate.

"Get your own." Raven told him. Charles clenched his jaw tightly and took a few calming breaths, trying not to lose his temper. Raven's golden eyes scanned over him warily as she recognized the rarely seen warning signs.

"The Shadow King is far too dangerous. We can't take him on yet, and we can't simply go poking around hoping to find some hint of him." Charles said too evenly. Raven actually took a subconscious step back. A truly angry Charles is one of the few things in this world that is pretty much universally avoided. Once you've witnessed it. You're certain to try not to make that mistake, ever again. "He will notice and he will punish us."

"Charles—" Erik interrupted unwisely. Charles' fiery blue eyes snapped to his, almost seeming to glow.

"Oh shit." Marie whispered, looking down at her hands apprehensively. Hank's ears were pinned back against his head as if he were a puppy being scolded.

"Do not interrupt me!" Charles growled, causing her to flinch. She and Hank fled the room in record time, whispering unnoticed excuses. Erik stood, looking as though he was about to argue, but Raven hastily shook her head at him in warning. "I know what I am talking about, Erik. He will kill you, if you're lucky! We have no way to fight him! He's taken our son! …I won't allow you to bring others into the firing line!"

"I wouldn't let him—" Erik began.

"How? How would you protect them? _I _can't even protect them and you can't even reach his plane of existence!" Charles shouted. The metal around them vibrated. Erik winced and focused on bringing his ability back under control.

"Enough!" He nearly yelled. "You know that I have no desire to put the children in jeopardy. I am taking precautions. The others simply offered their help collecting information." Charles shook his head.

"That's already too much."

"Schatz, please…" Erik tried almost soothingly, taking a step towards him. Charles glared fiercely, opening his mouth to scream at him when realization flickered across his features. His glare shifted, to be replaced by a look of numb resignation. Erik frowned, seeing Charles' shoulders slump. The fury buzzing in the air around them died away rapidly.

"You aren't listening to me." Charles noted in a hollow sounding voice. Raven's eyes narrowed when she noticed mugs on the table beginning to vibrate, along with Marie's forgotten glass of water. "Don't treat me like a child. I never was one. I know what he's capable of. I've felt it and you have _no_ idea…"

"Charles… I'm sorry." Erik consoled him, coming cautiously up to him and pulling him into a hug. "We aren't going to lose them, I promise."

"You can't." Charles muttered into his shoulder.

"I already have, and I keep my promises, as you can attest." Erik assured him, rubbing a hand over Charles' tense shoulders. Charles sniffed. "I am also going to get him back." Charles burrowed a little deeper into his shoulder, as if hiding from that assertion. Raven crept over to the now only subtly vibrating cups and held down the tray experimentally, finding it strange that Erik seemed unaware of his hold on the object. The mugs stopped vibrating but she could still feel movement under Marie's glass. _That's weird._ She gave up and let go of the tray. The mugs remained still, but the glass' vibrations were now increasing. Raven looked over at Erik. He was still oblivious, currently whispering calming words into Charles' ear. Raven frowned as a strange idea suddenly occurred to her, then lost it as she threw her arms up to shield her face, letting out a startled squeak when the glass suddenly shattered, sending shards flying all over the dining room. Their gazes all snapped to the tray. The drinking glass had been completely obliterated. The largest pieces were no more than an inch in diameter.

"Erik?" Raven questioned, wide eyed. "What the hell was that?"


	6. The Emoto Effect

**Chapter 6: The Emoto Effect**

"It never ends, does it?" Agent Frank thought aloud, holding the evidence bag in his hand up to the light. The hotel room that he and Moira stood in was splattered with an inordinate amount of blood, too much to have come from one victim alone.

"Care to let me in on the big secret here?" Moira asked, walking up behind him. He looked over his shoulder at her, raising an eyebrow in silent challenge. "People are dying, Peter, and it's fairly obvious that you've got something to do with it."

"You still don't trust me."

"We've been working together for almost a month now, Sir." Moira insisted, never breaking eye-contact with her superior-turned-partner. He frowned at the use of his title, turning to face her. "And in all that time I never gave you any reason not to trust _me_ either. I need to know." Peter studied her for a moment before nodding and moving past her to leave the crime-scene.

"Not here." He told her, holding up the police tape for her so she could duck under it.

* * *

"We could contact Moira and see if she can find anything." Raven suggested from where she sat on the window-seat in the library, watching Erik pace.

"About Francis, or Charles?" Alex inquired darkly, poking at one of the chess pieces on the board in front of him. Erik glared down at him and he snatched his hand away, leaving Charles and Erik's unfinished game intact. They had started it on the night of the 'Glass Incident' and had never gotten the chance to continue it since.

"I think information about either one would be helpful at this point." Raven said, glancing out the window at her brother, who was currently sitting alone on the lawn outside, staring up at the sky. He had taken to avoiding the others now, especially in enclosed spaces. The only person that he was willing to share a room with for any length of time was Logan, a fact that troubled the others to no end, especially Erik. He would spend time with the rest of them outside, but never for more than an hour at a time, always managing to find some excuse to slip away before that seemingly random time limit was reached.

"She has no way to help with this." Erik nearly growled in frustration, gesturing out the window. "She's already relayed everything that she and that other agent have learned about the Shadow King."

"Has Logan—" Alex began to ask, but stopped short, flinching at the look he got from Erik.

"No explanation. Just the same thing he said before." Raven replied.

"He isn't safe for us anymore." Erik recited, glaring bitterly out the window. Charles stood up and turned to face them, looking into the window as if to meet Erik's gaze. He smiled sadly at Erik before turning his back to them and wandering out of view. Erik scowled and the metal around them shifted, as though the fixtures nearby were beginning to melt. "Enough of this!" He muttered and stormed out of the room.

"Erik?" Raven called after him. He held up hand a without turning looking back and the metal solidified once again. Raven and Alex shared uncomfortable looks.

"So…" Alex said, breaking the tense silence that Erik had left in his wake. "Checkers?"

* * *

I sat on the edge of the bed in our cell. The child had finally fallen asleep. I hoped that she'd be able to remain that way for a long while this time. All of the crying was really beginning to fray my nerves. I had tried to get her to stop but well… I never claimed to be a people person, and as inexplicably fond as she'd become of me, I was still apparently rather frightening to her. I had seen two of the other prisoners clearly by now. Farouk was trying to keep us isolated after all, but I'd seen and recognized you -or rather the child had seen you and I had recognized the image she relayed- and there was another mutant, another man that I didn't know. He didn't seem too broken up about his captivity, although from the fleeting impressions I got from his mind, he was just a calm and collected sort of chap.

I stilled, becoming fully alert at the sound of movement outside our cell. Someone was coming closer. The footsteps were light and almost soundless, but there was a slight click indicating heels. I reached out telepathically and instantly recoiled. Moss came into my line of vision a moment later holding a tray. She stopped to regard me smugly from the other side of the bars.

"Xavier Junior." She said, smirking. "I expected you to be taller."

"Everyone does." I replied in a more modulated voice. The child curled up on the bed beside me had begun to fidget in response to the woman's voice. I rested my hand on one of her feet and sent a couple calming impressions her way before continuing. "Is that all? If you're hoping to tease me with that food I should mention: I'm incapable of experiencing hunger."

"How nice for you." Moss remarked, unlocking the cage. "Don't try anything funny, Junior. You know what I'm capable of." I waited until she was in the cage, letting her close enough to set down the tray next to the no-longer-sleeping child first. At least the girl was clever enough to fake it.

"I do, yes." I admitted casually. Moss smirked again, then made the mistake of looking up. I locked eyes with her. "And yet I still can't bring myself to care." I sensed Moss' mind beginning to push back. It was my turn to smirk. "I'm going to have to stop you right there." I added, and paused her in mid thought. I reached over and patted the child's legs, prompting her to sit up. She eyed Moss' statue-like stillness interestedly, before crawling over to sit beside me, reaching one tiny hand up to touch my cheek as she observed my glowing eyes. I grasped her hand and gently removed it from my face.

"Listen, Child, I've got an idea. Do you trust me?" I asked in a muted voice. The child chewed her lower lip as she considered this, then nodded. "Good. No more talking from now on then. Don't be frightened. I have no intention of harming you." She tilted her head to one side, looking up at me questioningly, then gasped when I projected into her mind for the first time.

_**I have a plan to get out of here but I am going to need your faithful cooperation to pull it off. Can you do that?**_

The child grabbed my hand leaning her head on my arm as she responded.

_**I want to go home.**_ She thought back. I sighed, then shifted my full attention to Moss for a second when my hold on her began to falter.

_**I can't hold her forever. Can you do it?**_ I restated, trying not to sound too forceful. The child sobered and nodded again.

_**Excellent.**_ I replied and snapped my fingers. Moss collapsed, unconscious. I stepped over her uncaringly, leading the child by the hand out of our cage. _**Stay close.**_

* * *

Erik found Charles sitting alone on the same garden bench that Erik and I had shared before our mission. He was reading an old, leather-bound book from our family library. Erik took a closer look at the spine as he walked over to him. A collection of Poe's short stories. Erik wondered if that was a wise choice considering…

"What's troubling you, my friend?" Charles asked, sounding concerned as Erik sat down beside him.

"You already know the answer, Charles." Erik returned, forcing himself not to look away. Charles had begun to look too much like a ghost for Erik to bear.

"I'm sorry but I have to do this."

"Why?" Erik inquired, frustrated. Charles opened his mouth to reply but Erik continued. "And why will you only see Logan?" The hint of a smile crossed Charles' pale face.

"Are you jealous?" He queried. Erik scowled. So, yes, a bit. Charles sighed and rested his head on Erik's shoulder. "I assure you. There's no need. The reason isn't nearly as pleasant as you suspect."

"You haven't answered my question." Erik noted.

"He's immortal." Charles admitted grimly. Erik frowned, feeling the guilt emanating from the younger man.

"I don't understand."

"I don't want to hurt anyone, but at least Logan… At least I'm certain that I won't kill him." Charles confessed. Erik felt dampness on his shoulder and realized that Charles was crying. He reached up a hand and ran it soothingly through his hair. Erik noticed movement out of the corner of his eye and looked down at the reflecting pool they were facing. The water was rippling, which made no sense as there was no wind. The ripples were becoming more dramatic as he watched. The sight was so sudden and peculiar that it took him a couple of seconds to notice the obvious. The water was flowing away from them as though it was repelled by some unseen force, but more accurately: it was flowing away from _Charles_.

Erik tightened his hold on him as he saw a few sizeable drops of water float up out of the pool, shining in the morning light like crystalline spheres.

"Charles?" Erik prompted, trying to keep his voice even and calm.

"I miss you." Charles whispered shyly, oblivious to the disturbance with his eyes shut. More beads of water were ascending to join the others, some of them combining to create larger globes. "Something strange is happening to me."

"You don't say." Erik replied, watching a little fish swim anxiously about inside one of the larger globes until it hid behind a leaf that had been carried up with it. It was as though he'd fallen into some sort of peculiar and depressing dream without noticing. He knew that he should probably be taking this more seriously, especially since the cause was still completely unaware of his effect, but this was Charles and Erik simply couldn't bring himself to believe that Charles would ever harm him.

"I'm serious, Erik." Charles responded, sounding exhausted. "Strange things keep happening around me. I know that I'm the cause, but I can't quite manage to control it yet. It seems to be tied in with my emotions." The little fish peeked out from behind its leaf only to dart out of sight again when another, tinier drop impacted its floating puddle. "I've been seeing Francis in my sleep. I don't think they're just dreams." Charles continued. "He won't tell me anything useful and our meetings are so brief…"

"I wondered where you'd gone." Erik said distractedly. Charles sat up to regard him with suspicion but instead gasped in surprise at the unexpected sight in front of them. All the little globes and droplets collapsed into the reflecting pool with a loud splash.

"What in the—Erik! Why didn't you say anything?" Charles demanded.

"I didn't want to disturb you." Erik responded easily. Charles frowned at him. "You weren't doing anything dangerous." Erik pointed out. Charles stared at him with an irritated expression on his face before taking a deep breath and attempting to clear his mind. He'd almost managed it when a thought occurred to him and his eyes snapped open to bore accusingly into Erik's.

"What do you mean you wondered where I'd gone?" There was a minor staring match between the two before Erik answered:

"I sneaked into your room while you were sleeping a few times. Your signature kept disappearing." Charles let out a little frustrated sound from his throat that Erik really shouldn't have found so adorable.

"I should go." Charles decided. "My annoyance will only make things worse."

"Yes, you're right. If you don't flee immediately the poor fish may never know what hit them." Erik deadpanned.

"This is serious, Erik." Charles admonished, although he was smiling slightly. "I don't want to hurt you."

"Then you won't." Erik replied, pulling him back onto the bench. Charles raised an eyebrow at him, surprised by his sudden naïveté. "I'm not being naïve. I'm being logical. Your tertiary mutation-" Erik paused for a second at the giant grin _that_ got from Charles. "Your tertiary mutation or whatever this may be reacts to your emotions, correct?"

"That's correct."

"You don't feel like hurting me at the moment do you?"

"No."

"Well then. I'm perfectly safe with you." Erik concluded. Charles relaxed a little.

"Unless you startle him." Logan warned, strolling towards them with a lit cigar in one hand. "Or he gets ticked off at something you do." At that Logan looked accusingly down at the young professor, taking a draw from his cigar.

"Then perhaps you'd like to take your cigar elsewhere." Erik responded coolly, his silver eyes following the other man's movements like a panther regarding its prey.

* * *

The child and I, mostly I, had managed to break out of the basement and we were running through the halls of the gaudy mansion under which we were being held. Whoever the Shadow King had possessed in order to acquire this place should be utterly ashamed of themselves. The hall we were currently jogging down was an appalling shade of mustard that had no right to exist in my world, accented by hints of a species of blue that ought to be extinct. The table we ran past on our way to the stairwell was so hideous that it simply _had_ to be expensive, a further 'fuck you' from the makers of the object no doubt. It also was painted just the right shade of blue to somehow not only clash with the mustard walls, but with the other blue in the accents. I felt two more presences coming towards us down the hall, and hastily pulled the child through the nearest unlocked door to hide. We were in an empty study, also hideous- but hey, there was a wall of windows across from us. Who thought that patterned, lime-green drapes were appropriate? Focus Francis! I locked the door and crossed the study to take a peek out the window. Oh lovely, I know where I am now.

I turned back to the child and blew out a breath, surveying our surroundings tactically, and resolutely avoiding acknowledging the disgusting, patterned rug. Fuck the sixties. …Actually, this room would do nicely.

_**Okay, I'm going to focus very intensely for a moment. Why don't you go sit and wait over there while I do this? It'll only be a few minutes.**_ I told the child. She pouted up at me unhappily, hesitant to let go. She had been hanging onto my hand like a life-line ever since we'd left the cage. _**Only a few minutes. I swear.**_ I insisted and she finally released me and climbed up into the padded leather desk chair behind me to wait. I sat down in the center of the room, reaching out with my telepathy for a familiar mind that I could latch onto. I had to get a message through quickly, before Farouk could locate either of us. I smiled at the unexpected connection that jumped out at me from the sea of minds around us. That was the best news I'd learned all day. I sent my message and opened my eyes, turning to address the child, when a large and irritatingly undetectable someone smashed their way into the room. The child screamed and darted over to hide behind me, her hands sparking in reaction to her fear. The large, muscular man lumbered toward us, looking simultaneously enraged and absolutely chuffed to bits to see me. It didn't take me long to recognize his face.

"Oh, well aren't you familiar. Haven't I killed you before?" I inquired casually.

"That was my brother, you little limey bastard!"

"I killed your brother, incidentally, but regardless, I was expecting a better insult than _that_." I replied. He growled and stomped toward me, clearly intending to strangle me. The child shrieked and cowered when I let him grab my throat. I waited until she had scrambled far enough away from us, then transitioned. He went flying back into the wall with a satisfying crunch. All the windows shattered as well, clueing others in on our location, but you can't win them all. "I can definitely see the resemblance: same mistakes, same cheekbones." I held out my hand to the child. "Come along, child. Time to run." I prompted. No reaction. I paused and looked at the girl more closely. She was holding her hands up near her ears with a discomfited expression. "Oh, right…"

_**We need to go.**_ I projected to her. She hesitated. _**He was a threat. When he wakes he will be an angry threat. We need to run, now!**_ I insisted sternly. She jumped at the sudden intensity of my internal voice, but then finally ran up and grabbed my hand. We bolted out of the room and round the corner just in time. I pulled her up the stairs then paused, letting out an exasperated sigh and bent down.

_**You're too little. I need to carry you.**_ I informed her regretfully. This was so not my forte. She nodded in an oddly businesslike manner and climbed up onto my back. "Um… Alright then." _**Hold on tight. **_I added awkwardly before breaking into an all out run for the nearest balcony. I'd only just managed to reach it when three of the Shadow King's thugs caught up to us and opened fire. I just kept running, continuing over the balcony with a running leap that elicited a frightened shout from my passenger, and sped into the forest.

* * *

"You actually expect me to believe that you're from the future." Moira said, setting her coffee cup down on the simple black coffee-table in Peter's unexpectedly-modest living room.

"Of course I'm from the future. Francis is from the future. Why do you find it so strange that I am?" Peter responded, sounding incredibly practical considering the subject matter.

"Francis Xavier doesn't have a paper trail. Let alone the time that it would take to reach your position." Moira argued. Peter rolled his eyes.

"Oh, well the reason for that should be obvious."

"It isn't."

"I was thrown back a bit farther than the others. It gave me time to make myself at home." He explained with a shrug, taking a bite of his biscuit. Moira watched him thoughtfully, feeling both intrigued and annoyed by her partner's behavior.

"How much farther?"

"About five ye—" He began but suddenly froze.

"Peter?" Moira asked, leaning closer. He was as still as a statue. She'd only ever seen something like this once before when working with Charles. She was sure that wasn't a good sign. "Peter? Damn it!" She stood up and looked out the window to see if she could spot anyone acting especially telepathic. Not that she thought she'd be able to tell. They could easily be elsewhere in the building. It was an apartment building in New York, after all; they were surrounded by strangers. She jumped when the other Agent began talking again.

"-ears give or take a..few…" Peter looked up at her shocked expression and dropped his biscuit onto his plate in annoyance. "V'affanculo! Piccolo diavolo! I hate it when he does that!"

"Wh…" Moira began, uncertain what she even wanted to ask him.

"We need to go." Peter announced, standing up. "Immediately. You still have a way to contact Xavier and the others?"

"Um…"

"Good. Do it now."

"But I don't—"

"Agent MacTaggart, lives are in jeopardy, and frankly, I doubt they'll react well at all if I just appear without at least some warning. You have a number?"

"Yes, but I'm not telling you how to find them."

"Good for you. Make the call." He replied and left. Moira hesitated for a moment, chewing her lip. Then she swore and went downstairs and ask a random neighbor for the use of their phone, just in case he'd bugged his. Agent Frank was already gone.

* * *

"Hello?" Raven answered the phone after the first couple rings.

"Hey, it's me. Agent Frank is on his way there. Don't ask me how because I have no idea." Moira informed her. Raven looked over at Erik and Marie, eyes wide, before responding.

"You're sure?"

"What is it?" Erik asked.

"It's Moira. She says her partner found us." Raven reported. Erik snatched the phone away.

"Explain." He ordered, right before the doorbell rang causing the girls in the room to jump.

"That was weird." Raven gasped. Marie narrowed her eyes and went to answer the door. Logan beat her to it.

"Who the hell are you?" Logan was asking as she reached him, Erik and Raven trailing behind. Peter opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off when Marie slugged him in the face instead.

"You fuckin' son of a bitch!" She shouted angrily, glaring up at him as he straightened, wiping blood away from his mouth.

"Alright. I'll admit I deserved that." Peter remarked. "Good to see you again, Rogue."

"You know him?" Erik asked. Marie began to pull off her gloves and Peter took a hasty step back.

"Wait! Wait! Fluke sent me! If you drain me you'll never know."

"Sorry, who?" Raven asked.

"Francis." Marie explained. "That's what the twins always called him."


	7. Dysfunctional Family Portrait

**Chapter 7: Dysfunctional Family Portrait**

"You fuckin' son of a bitch!" Marie yelled, slamming her fist into Peter's jaw. The blow knocked him back a step, but he just calmly straightened up, wiping the blood away from the corner of his mouth.

"Alright, I admit: I deserved that." He remarked, smiling down at her. "It's good to see you again, Rogue."

"You know him?" Erik asked as Marie began to pull one of her gloves off. Peter took a hasty step back, holding up his hands in surrender.

"Wait! Wait! I get it! you're angry." He said. Marie stared up at him, clearly unimpressed. "But Fluke sent me. Drain me now and you will never know." Marie halted her approach.

"Sorry, who?" Raven asked.

"Francis." Marie explained pulling her gloves back on, much to Peter's relief. "That's what the twins always called him. Come on in." She stepped aside to let Peter past. He slipped by, pausing to study Erik. Erik raised an eyebrow at him and shifted his attention to Marie.

"Keep walkin'." She told Peter gruffly. He obeyed, still looking vaguely intimidated. Raven turned and led him into the living room. A smile spread across Marie's face as soon as Peter wasn't looking.

"Care to explain?" Erik inquired.

"It's complicated." Marie replied, following after the others. "He aint a threat… But we should still keep an eye on him anyway."

* * *

Erik, Raven, and Logan all watched Peter and Marie with interest as they conversed over the map they'd spread out on the living room floor. Sean and Darwin were out on the grounds somewhere. The young sonic mutant had run off to find Charles right after he'd delivered the requested map.

"We need more than this before we can act." Marie insisted.

"I'm sure he was aware of that, but this is all he sent me." Peter replied. "We've got a location. We know who's holding him. That's enough for me to work with even if it isn't good enough for you." Marie glared at him and got up, starting to pace.

"He's more thorough than this. You know what he's like. He doesn't skimp on details."

"Granted, but we hardly have time to sit around and debate the anomaly."

"Listen Bub, I don't know who you think you are, but you're not in charge here. He's one of ours. We make the decisions here." Logan told the impatient Agent. Peter's lips thinned in irritation.

"You're right, you don't know." He said shortly.

"Pete." Marie warned.

"I am aware that I may simply be a guest here." Peter continued undeterred. "However, you are too, _Wolverine_, and _you_ aren't in charge here either." Marie closed her eyes in dissatisfaction. Logan let out a low growl, his hand going to his dog tags as he stared the Agent down. Peter frowned and scanned the room, ignoring the threat. "Speaking of, where is Professor X? He must've sensed my presence by now."

* * *

"I'm not certain that it was a good idea to bring him here." Charles commented from his place on the lawn as Erik pushed past the two younger mutants to sit next to him. Charles took his hand and wound their fingers together, still barely acknowledging the others. Marie glanced up at Peter and shrugged.

"He knows how to duck." She dismissed. Peter smiled at her.

"Catching on now, are you?" Charles observed, still refusing to look in Peter's direction. The young Agent came to sit on the telepath's other side.

"I hear that you've been seeing Francis in your dreams."

Charles nodded.

"He doesn't talk about his captivity. He's mostly just… keeping in touch." Charles said, looking troubled. His face suddenly went blank. He remained quiet for a moment before his expressionless face looked up at Peter for the first time. "Cinque bambole sono sottochiave annella casa dei giocattoli: il gigante, disturbi atmosferici, tempesta, venturo, et uno fuocho artificialo bambino." He recited, looking intently into Peter's eyes. Peter exchanged a look with Rogue before turning back to Charles.

"Hello, Fluke." He said simply. Erik tightened his grip on Charles' hand.

"Onslaught." Not-Charles corrected. "…An echo, to be precise. You're meant to be dead."

"I've noticed." Peter responded. "Your accent is atrocious."

"Or unborn." Onslaught's echo amended, ignoring the last statement. "The timetable's been accelerated."

"How?" Marie inquired, stepping up to stand behind Peter's shoulder.

"You tell me." Onslaught responded with a shrug. "I'm with the firework. She's inexplicably active for her age, his perfect little Kryptonite puppet. I can't let that happen."

"Francis!" Marie scolded.

"It's an echo." Peter reminded her. "How do we reach you?"

"Just solve the riddle. You've reached the 'end of the reel'." The echo responded, and Charles went limp in Erik's arms.

"I really wish he wouldn't do that." Peter said, looking Charles' unconscious form over with a mildly concerned expression. "It's beyond creepy." He looked at Erik who was fussing worriedly over the unconscious telepath. "He'll be fine." Peter assured him. "He didn't leave it long enough to cause any permanent damage."

"What was the riddle?' Marie asked, changing the subject.

"Five dolls are locked in the Dark King's toy box: The Giant, Static, Tempest, Black Jack, and a baby firework." Peter translated, distractedly.

"Other prisoners maybe?" Marie guessed.

"Static and Tempest could be Moss and Quested." Peter agreed.

"He's listing them by their mutation." Erik said. "The Giant is his brother Cain… Black Jack?" Erik prompted looking to Marie. She shrugged.

"Never heard of 'im."

"That's because he was before your time." Peter realized. "There was a mutant, when we were kids. He used to carry a pack of cards with him as part of his arsenal. He could charge them somehow. I remember seeing him throw one at Sabertooth, and watching it explode."

"Fuck…" Marie admired.

"He was small time though, a thief and a conman but nothing that would catch the Shadow King's interest." Peter said, frowning.

"His ability might be enough." Erik pointed out.

"Fireworks." Peter said suddenly, eyes going wide.

"What is it?' Marie said as he leapt to his feet and ran towards the mansion.

"Fireworks!" He called back over his shoulder as though that explained it.

"Pete!" Marie shouted after him. "Damn it!" She chased after him, leaving Erik to deal with the unconscious Professor.

"Erik?"

Erik almost jumped at the unexpected sound.

"Charles. Are you alright?"

"Mostly. I have a bit of a headache, but I'll manage." Charles almost whispered. By the way his pale face was currently scrunched up, Erik was betting that 'headache' was Charles-speak for 'migraine'. "I'm getting tired of being every other telepath's puppet."

"When were you Emma's?" Erik asked, holding up his hand to shade the other man's face.

"Mmmh. Pietro's afraid that he recognizes the last mutant." Charles reported.

"Don't you mean Peter?"

"Yes. _Peter_." Charles amended, with a flash of that little, accommodating smile he used when he didn't want Erik to see how upset he was. "If he's right… she's only a child."

"Is he right?" Erik inquired, slipping an arm under Charles' back.

"Most likely." Charles answered, then pulled a face. "You aren't carrying me."

"Then stand up." Erik challenged. Charles tried to push himself up, his arms beginning to shake slightly, then lay back against Erik's arm.

"Give me a moment." Charles tried.

"You can't even stand to open your eyes."

"I can walk without my eyes."

"I wouldn't advise it."

"I didn't ask you. You just want to carry me."

Erik looked Charles over thoughtfully before slipping his other arm under Charles' legs and scooping him up off the grass. Charles struggled, but as Erik had calculated, he was too exhausted to do much about it.

"This is entirely without consent." Charles said, pouting. Erik kissed the top of his head.

"You're exhausted. Let me take care of you." He replied, calling Charles' cane into his hand with his magnekinesis. Charles relaxed, thinking that sounded rather sweet of him, then he frowned, noticing the actual feel of Erik's mood.

"Very manipulative of you." He remarked. "If I hadn't been touching your skin it might've even worked."

"I wasn't lying, Charles." Erik assured him, and the younger man let the matter drop. He was really very tired after all.

* * *

"MacTaggart." Moira said into the phone she'd been passed by that Captain who's name she could never remember.

"Do you still have that case file with you? I need you to check something for me." Peter informed her impatiently from the other end of the line. Moira sighed, already having grown accustomed to this sort of behavior.

"Yeah, what do you need?"

"I need the confirmed identities we have for the slashing victims." Peter explained. "It would be a couple, most likely in a more domestic setting." Moira searched through the folder in her hands until she found what she was looking for.

"I've got two possible matches. You were right: that hotel where the last one took place _did_ have two victims. They're still trying to figure out how anyone did that to him."

"You probably don't want to know the answer to that." Peter informed her. "The other one. What about that one?"

"A car crash, Confirmed to have been orchestrated. The details match the same M.O. as the rest except… Oh God."

"What?"

"Two bodies found. A John and Su Lee, their six-year-old daughter is unaccounted for."

"Let me guess: Jubilation Lee?" Peter asked.

"Yes. How did you know?"

"I've found her." He said, looking over at Marie and Erik with a grim expression. "They aren't murders they're abductions. The Shadow King is collecting mutations."

* * *

I slumped against the tree to my right and slowly let myself slide to the ground. Jubilee let go and dropped down off my back hastening to stand in front of me and grab at my collar. I looked her over.

"You've got blood on you." I noted. She sniffed and wiped at her cheek. "Not yours, then?" I concluded as my vision blurred. She let out a little whimper and began to fuss over me when I lay down on the ground. I must've lost a lot of blood. "Wonder where I've been shot." I muttered as my eyes began to fall shut.

"No!" Jubilee exclaimed, shaking my shoulder. I tried to fight it for a second but there wasn't much point. I gave in, slipping into unconsciousness. "No! Wake up!" Jubilee cried, into my face. I was almost gone. She should be off hiding by now. "Wake UP!" She demanded again and I jolted awake at the shock she sent into my chest, forcing my heart back into action. I coughed, rolling onto my back and stared up at her.

"You're quite good at that for an infant." I gasped. She stared down at me for a long moment before responding.

"I'm six." As though that was a contradiction. I coughed out a breathless laugh. That settled her down a little. It was getting rapidly darker out, and I could tell by the way the girl was shivering that the temperature was dropping as well.

"You're talking. Just in time. I need to know where I've been shot." I explained. Her little face crumpled up like she was about to start bawling again. "Please don't. It's important. I can't feel it, and I need to survey the damage."

"It doesn't hurt?"

"Not at all." I assured her. I was having trouble breathing. How long had that been going on?

"Here." She said grabbing my left hand in hers and pressing it to a place on my side. Ah, a punctured lung. I wasn't going to get much farther.

"_Scheisse_." I cursed softly. She caught it anyway and frowned at me.

"What?"

"Nothing. I never said that." I replied, searching the forest around us for a place we could hide. There was a little cave not terribly far away to our right. "Come on. We're going to that cave. What do I call you?"

"Child?" She responded blinking up at me. I paused, momentarily taken aback.

"W—No. I meant what do you want me to call you?"

"Oh."

"You're supposed to answer now."

"Oh."

I squinted at her. "Are you doing that on purpose?"

"I like it when you talk."

"Ah."

"You sound funny."

"I have a—Forget it. What's you're name?"

"Guess."

"You know I can just look in your head and—"

"You should guess."

* * *

"Moira, there you are. What took you so long?" Peter greeted, letting her into the apartment.

"Is it just me, or have you gotten ruder?" Marie said from her seat beside Erik on the couch.

"Oh, I think he's gotten worse." Moira remarked sitting in the armchair opposite them.

"Do you have the file?" Peter prompted.

"You're worse than your brother." Marie told him. Moira retrieved the case-file from her briefcase and handed it to him.

"Five murders beginning shortly after your mission to Cuba." Peter began, passing the folder over to Marie. "I think you'll see why I was interested in them."

"Oh!" Marie exclaimed closing the folder at the sight of the first incredibly gory crime scene photo. She took a deep breath and opened it again more warily. Predictably, Erik showed far less of a reaction. "These look like they were done by a speedster." Marie observed. Erik and Moira looked at her blankly.

"Exactly." Peter confirmed. "From the state of the latest victim. I'd say he or she had to have been capable of at least _nearing_ Mach 5 to achieve that splatter pattern." Moira winced. Marie skipped to the last photo.

"You're saying _that_ used to be a person?" Erik queried.

"Yes. Definitely."

"I only know of three speed-related mutants…" Marie said, passing Erik the folder.

"Two of whom haven't been born yet." Peter said. "It can't have been Sprite. She can't move that fast. She's also twelve years of age and living with her mother in Russia. I've checked."

"So you have no idea who did this." Erik commented, unimpressed.

"You could—" Marie began.

"Yes, thank you Rogue. Let's not waste our time with that. The point is that we know what these are now. These were done by a hand of the Shadow King. Jubilee's parents were confirmed as two of the victims. Another was committed in a less than reputable bar known in some circles as a place to play high stakes poker. I'm guessing that's where they snatched Gambit."

"Fine. I get the point." Marie said evenly.

"We have to move on this now."

"Do your friends at the Agency know about this?" Erik asked.

"They're aware of our interest." Moira answered. "But not why we've been looking into it."

Erik studied Peter's face for a moment, then turned to Marie.

"We can't get involved." He decided, standing up.

"You already are involved!" Peter insisted, standing as well.

"Come on. We should go."

"He took your son! You aren't just going to—" Peter was cut off when Erik used the metal in his tie clip to give it a nasty tug.

"My family is none of your concern. I do not intend to risk revealing any of the others on your investigation." Erik growled. "You will leave us alone form now on. Understood?" Peter gagged a bit.

"Erik?" Moira said tensely. Marie swallowed watching the exchange.

"Am I understood?"

Peter nodded and Erik released his hold letting him fall to his knees. He turned to address Marie, looking completely unconcerned.

"We're leaving." He informed her and strolled out of the apartment. Marie hesitated for a second, looking down at Pietro with obvious concern. He glared up at her as he loosened his tie rather forcefully and gave her a short, almost imperceptable nod. She swallowed, and hurried after Erik.


	8. Not Out of the Woods

**Chapter 8: Not Out of the Woods**

"You're going to wish you hadn't done that." Marie told Erik when she caught up to him at the door to the stairwell.

"I doubt that." Erik disagreed.

"I know you do. Is there a reason why we're takin' the stairs?" Marie inquired, hurrying to keep up with his brisk pace. "'Cause personally, I prefer the elevator at this height."

"Yes. There is." Erik confirmed. He stopped on the next landing and pulled her around the corner. They were two floors below Peter's apartment now.

"Erik?" Marie questioned. Erik held up a hand to stop her, then pressed a finger to his lips. Marie went silent. She jumped at the racket up above. A stampede of booted feet, then a crash, gunfire, then a loud slam as someone charged through the door to the stairwell. Erik calmly moved in front of Marie, pulling his hunting knife out of his boot as they heard more shots from closer by.

Someone was rushing towards them down the stairs, chased by another someone with heavy, booted feet. Two more shots, a click. A familiar voice muttered a curse. Moira sped into view just as her pursuer shot her. She dropped her gun, leaning heavily against the wall. A man dressed all in black, carrying a rifle came into view, aiming for a kill shot. Moira glared up at him and pressed a hand to the wound in her shoulder.

"Moira. Duck." Erik instructed and hurled his knife past her into her attacker's shoulder. He screamed and fired blindly at Erik. Even if he hadn't stopped the bullets in midair they probably wouldn't have hit him. Erik retrieved his knife with his magnekinesis and used it to slash the thug's arm, making him drop his weapon.

"Rogue." Erik prompted. Marie came forward and grabbed the rifle up off the floor, pointing it at it's owner.

"You knew about them didn't you?" Moira observed, wincing as she pushed herself up into a seated position.

"Yes." Erik pulled off the thug's balaclava. He was a blond haired, blue eyed, sculpted asshole, the type one might see in tasteless calendars, or in Hitler's fantasy. He didn't look very bright either, the sort that thought with his muscles, or someone else's head. "Stay with them." Erik ordered, pulling Marie's pistol out from it's hiding place at the small of her back and tossing it to Moira.

"You're going back up there on your own?" Moira asked as he jogged up the stairs. Erik flashed her a shark-like grin.

"There are only three more." He returned, vanishing from view.

* * *

When Erik got out into the hall on Peter's floor, he spotted another thug lying unconscious and bleeding on the carpet with two of the young agent's neighbors crouched over him. It looked like Moira had shot him in the knee before someone had struck him over the head with… Ah, there was a frying pan lying forgotten on the floor beside the middle-aged Latino woman. She was currently berating her husband in rapid Spanish while he tried to slow the bleeding, apparently for 'hiding like a coward' and leaving her to 'handle everything, as usual'. She looked up at Erik as he attempted to slip past. He assured her, also in Spanish, that he was not with the thugs as he reached Peter's doorway.

The door had been thrown from it's hinges. There was another thug lying in the entryway to the living room, bleeding from a bullet wound in his stomach. He raised his weapon to fire but Erik just used his magnetism to take hold of the thug's weapon and knocked him out with it.

"Agent Frank?" Erik called. He heard a crash from the kitchen to his left. Erik crept toward the sound to find Peter being pinned to the kitchen table by the last of the thugs. This one was more graceful looking than the others, finely muscled with a build similar to Peter's. He was holding a butcher knife to Peter's eye in a silent threat. Erik immediately called it into his hand and away from the masked bastard.

"Look out." Peter warned, but it was already too late. His attacker blurred towards Erik and flung him forward into the stove, knocking the wind out of him. The speedster turned round to face him, his dark eyes crinkled in amusement. Erik took hold of every piece of metal in the room around him and hurled it at him. The speedster dodged it easily, but then had to duck for cover to avoid being injured by the maelstrom of flying metal that Erik had created around them. Peter ducked under the kitchen table to wait it out in relative safety. The speedster looked at Erik, then rolled to the side to avoid a pair of knifes that embedded themselves in the spot he'd abandoned. He looked at Peter, calculating his chances.

"Oh, he'll kill you." Peter assured him matter-of-factly. "…Eventually." After a split second's hesitation, the speedster disappeared in another blur of motion. Apparently he'd been able to see the truth in Peter's warning. The metal around the kitchen dropped out of the air. "Where're the others?" Peter inquired getting out from under the table.

"The stairwell. Moira's been hit. Marie stayed with her."

"Shit. Alright, I'm calling this in." Peter replied, striding out of the kitchen. "You and Marie should make yourselves scarce before the cavalry arrives."

"Agent Frank." Erik said and Peter paused to listen. "It would seem that you have become a target."

"It would, woul—Fuck!" Peter swore walking over to inspect Moira's battered suitcase. "He's taken everything! …**Verdammt**!" He kicked the case into the wall and it broke apart on impact.

* * *

Raven sat in the comfortable leather armchair in Charles' study with her feet propped up on his desk. She was twirling his cane in one hand, the scaly blue skin of her forehead crinkled in worry as she watched over her brother's motionless form.

Charles was lying on the old sofa to her right, having finally fallen into an uneasy slumber. He'd been tossing and turning for the first twenty minutes or so until he'd suddenly gone limp. She couldn't feel his signature at all anymore, which meant he'd left his body again. They would be reaching the hour mark soon and she could see his breathing was becoming less and less frequent.

He'd left for too long only once before when they were in their late teens. After about two hours, his heart had simply stopped beating. If she hadn't found him when she did he probably would've died. Needless to say, it still scared the shit out of her anytime she caught him astrally travelling since. She fussed uncomfortably with the burgundy throw he'd draped over her. She couldn't understand why he still did it, but figured that it must be a 'telepath thing'.

Someone knocked softly on the door.

"Yeah? Come in." She called in her true voice. _Why bother pretending at a time like this?_

"Hey Raven." Alex greeted. "No change yet, I guess?"

"He's still… out." Raven confirmed. "What is it?"

"Erik and Marie are back. It looks like Agent Frank was right. The Shadow King sent some thugs to take out him and Moira, including the speedster they think is responsible for those kidnappings."

"Oh my God, are they okay?"

"Mostly bumps and bruises from what I could tell but Marie had blood on her shirt." Alex admitted. Raven jumped up out of her chair and hurried from the room to check on her daughter. Alex was left staring vacantly at the doorway through which she'd just disappeared.

"Damn." He appraised belatedly.

* * *

"Where is Charles?" Erik asked as they headed for their rooms.

"He's still in his study, I think." Darwin answered. "He's out of body again. Raven went upstairs to sit with him a while ago."

Erik frowned, clearly displeased by this news. He turned to look over his shoulder at the sound of bare feet padding quickly down the polished wood of the stairs.

"Marie! …Erik. Alex just told me what happened." Said a very blue, very naked Raven as she came into view. She paused, holding Marie at arms' length in order to inspect the smears of blood down the other woman's front.

"I'm okay. It's not mine." Marie assured her. Raven pulled her into a tight hug.

"Nice." Sean remarked appreciatively.

"Sean." Erik warned. Raven released Marie, her scales flickering to create the illusion of a black miniskirt and blouse.

"Seriously!" Marie said. "She's my _Mom_." She returned her attention to Raven. "Really, I'm fine. It's Moira's blood. She got shot in the shoulder and I had to stick with her in the stairwell while the others fought."

Raven opened her mouth to respond but was cut off by a shout and a crash from upstairs. Erik rushed past them to see what had happened. Raven and Logan followed close behind.

"This family…" Marie remarked, shaking her head.

* * *

"What happened?" Logan demanded. Erik's silver eyes flicked to Charles' cane in Alex's hands, then to the closed door.

"He woke up and all the mirrors and everything just… exploded!" Alex exclaimed. "This went flying at my head and I ran for it."

Erik tried the door. Locked. He looked over at Alex.

"It shut itself." Alex explained with a shrug. Erik let out an exasperated sigh and waved a hand over the doorknob, using his ability to unlock it with a soft click. He grabbed the knob just as they heard the answering click of the lock sliding back into place.

"Great job." Logan commented. Erik glared at him.

"That wasn't me." He stated flatly, then waved his hand over the knob again. This time he mimed a tugging motion. The knob came apart. The separate pieces floated apart, still hovering in midair. Then the pieces stilled, still levitating, but no longer under Erik's command. The lock neatly reassembled itself, and there was another soft click as the lock reengaged once more. Erik growled out a string of curses in multiple languages and punched the door.

"You know, this would be kind of funny if the situation wasn't so serious." Raven reflected, nervously.

"You've become naked again." Erik responded. Raven narrowed her eyes at him, then brushed past Logan to lean against the door.

"Charles?" She called. There was a rustling of fabric on the other side of the door.

"Yes?" Charles called back tentatively.

"Would you please open this door? We just want to make sure you're okay."

"No, thank you."

"What if we just let Logan in?' Raven offered. Erik shot her a venomous look.

"No. Erik!" Charles rebuked. "I heard that. You will do no such thing."

Logan raised an eyebrow at Erik.

"It was just a thought." Erik returned.

"Listen. _I _don't matter right now." Charles began.

"Charles—"

"Francis has been shot." Charles continued. "He's out in the woods somewhere with that little girl who was taken. They tried to run but they need our help. _Now_."

* * *

Back at the apartment, Peter looked up from the wreckage that used to be his kitchen to see Director Johnson standing in his doorway. He beckoned for Peter to join him.

"Care to explain yourself, Agent?" Director Johnson prompted as Peter pushed past the other agents and forensic personnel to join him in the hall.

"Sir?"

"Don't start Sir-ing me now, Peter." Johnson said tiredly. "Just explain to me what the hell is going on here."

"Agent MacTaggart and I have been looking into a criminal case. I thought that it might have some relation to our so-called 'Mutant Problem'. I was right. The Shadow King has been kidnapping mutants and framing it to look like serial killings. We were meeting to discuss it when his thugs arrived."

"How did you know they were his?"

"Among other things, one of them could move faster than a cheetah." Peter said, running a hand through his hair. "We've identified one of the kidnapping victims. A six-year-old girl named Jubilation Lee. My sources tell me she has quite a gift with electricity."

"You should've let me in on this one Peter. This is not going to look good."

"Why do you think I wanted to check it out off the record first?" Peter insinuated. Johnson sighed. He had been one of the first people to encounter Pietro in this timeline and had somehow developed a strange, almost paternal relationship with the younger agent. Until now, that had never seemed to come at odds with their work.

"Okay. You head back to base." He decided, Peter opened his mouth to protest. "Not negotiable. You will wait there until a formal debriefing can be held in which you will share all the intel. that you and MacTaggart gathered, in detail."

"I don't think…"

"It certainly seems that way at the moment." Johnson interjected. "Go."

Peter eyed him coolly before leaving as ordered.

* * *

Out in the darkness of the forest, little Jubilee sat huddled against my uninjured side for warmth. We had both gone silent a while ago after it had become apparent that I would have to choose between sustained breathing and talking. She would get up every once in a while to check that I was still awake and alert. She waited another minute and leaned over to check again. My eyes had fallen shut. She poked me a couple times, hoping for a reaction, then shook me when there wasn't one. That didn't work either. She let out a little whimper and leaned against my shoulder.

"Come back!" She whined. I crouched down beside her in my astral form. In the state that I was in, I knew that my body would be dead soon.

"You don't know what you're asking." I observed. She was crying again. There was movement in the distance. I climbed up over the little rise in the forest floor that concealed our little cave and caught sight of figures coming towards us in the distance, at least two of whom were armed with rifles. Well, shit. "You need to hide." I continued, coming back over to kneel beside her. I knew she couldn't hear me, but oh well, force of habit I guess. I wondered for a moment whose habit it was, Dad's perhaps? I don't know. These weren't meant to be my last thoughts on this Earth. I felt that they ought to be more relevant, or at least a little cooler. Jubilee wasn't leaving.

"Don't go! Come back! We're supposed to go home!" She insisted, shaking my shoulder again as her hands began to spark.

"I'll die." I replied, getting a bit annoyed. "You don't even know me that well! Why aren't you hiding?"

"Come back so we can go home." Jubilee insisted with a sniff, seeming to contemplate something.

"Be quiet." I advised, then frowned irritably. "Wait. Why am I still talking to you?! It's utterly pointless! Wow. I am going to make one incredibly neurotic ghost." I noted. Then the child did something I'd never have expected. She scooted over so that she could lean her forehead against mine, grabbing the side of my face and, intentionally or not, sent a jolt of current right into my head. With a startled gasp I was with her in the waking world.


	9. Now We're All Sons of Bitches

**Chapter 9: Now We're All Sons of Bitches**

"Your report seems to be lacking in detail, Agent Frank." Colonel Stryker insinuated from Peter's usual seat at the conference table beside Director Johnson. The other agents were all taking their sweet time reviewing the file, not wanting to weigh in before seeing who would have the advantage.

"It wasn't a formal investigation, at least not yet. The mutant who attacked us snatched much of our intel after he attacked us." Peter responded blankly, trying for once to reign himself in. He knew he needed to play this carefully. We couldn't afford to screw this up.

"And who is 'us'?" Stryker returned. Peter's eyes flicked over to Director Johnson for a second. _Since when is this Stryker's sandbox? _Johnson gave him the slightest of nods, so he answered.

"Myself and Agent MacTaggart."

"According to your report, you were attacked, without warning by three heavily armed humans and this so called 'speedster'." Said Agent Mathews. "You two were separated and MacTaggart was incapacitated by a wound to her right shoulder. Do you actually expect us to believe that you survived this assault with no back up whatsoever?"

"No." Peter responded simply.

"I've seen your kitchen, Agent Frank." Stryker announced. Peter winced internally. _Note to self. Find new apartment._ "The evidence would seem to suggest that you had mutant assistance."

"I agree." Peter replied. "It certainly would."

"Peter." Johnson warned. Peter scowled but then relented and elaborated.

"If I had to guess, I'd say it was the magnekinetic."

"If you had to guess?" Agent Meyer echoed.

"The speedster had me pinned to the table. He was about to stab me in the eye with a kitchen knife when it suddenly flew out of his hand. I heard someone else come into the room. After that I was more concerned with getting out of the way when all the metal in the kitchen was thrown at my attacker by an unseen force." Peter explained. He was technically telling them the truth, merely relaying an edited version. It was the best way to lie, as he'd taught me in my mid-teens. "It would appear that they are stil keeping an eye on their former associates." Stryker looked incredibly displeased by that news, paranoid as always. So Peter added. "He saved my life."

"Why isn't this in your report?" Johnson inquired.

"The speedster knew where and when to corner us. He knew about our activities. His human compatriots seemed even to know about Project X, which I understand was highly classified." Peter explained, his calm mask faltering slightly. "And then of course there's the recent break in at our holding facility."

"You think we've got a leak." Mathews summarized. Peter locked eyes with Director Johnson.

"Don't you?"

* * *

Out in the forest, four of the Shadow King's men had just come across our little sanctuary. One of them pulled a black leather glove off and knelt down to check my pulse.

"He's alive, but he isn't doing good." The brunet reported. I tried to contain my annoyance. I've been shot. Of course I'm not doing _well_, Dumbass.

"Right." Their leader ordered in an accented voice. Welsh maybe? "You two take him back to base. The Shadow King wants this one alive." His voice sounded sort of familiar, but I couldn't quite place it. I snuck a peek at him as Dumbass scooped my body up off the forest floor. He was smaller than the others, around the same height as Dad, with my more delicate looking build. He must be a mutant. He sounded young, perhaps even a few years my junior, and the bit of his pale grey face I could see peeking out from under his hood seemed to indicate youth as well.

"Boretta, and you… Yes, you. I've forgotten your name."

"Stanley."

"Yes, that was it. Come along, we'll spread out and search for the Girl. She can't have wandered far." The Boy ordered. The larger of the two soldier types, Boretta, grunted in acknowledgement, clearly not appreciating being ordered around by a child, but begrudgingly obliged. Apparently he wasn't dumb enough to challenge the 'little monster'. How interesting… My curiosity piqued, I chanced another look at the other mutant's retreating back. He stopped walking and turned around… Meeting my gaze. I gasped and hastily retreated into the safety of the subconscious. Even another telepath would have to put in some effort if they wanted to follow me there.

"Something wrong, Arawn?" Boretta asked, noticing the mutant hanging back. The corner of the boy's pale blue lips quirked up in a subtle smile as he turned away from the cave.

"Nothing." He said, resuming his previous course away from Jubilee's hiding place. He glanced over at the man carrying my limp form back to the mansion for a moment before adding. "Things have just gotten more interesting."

"You got a position on the girl?" Stanley inquired.

"She's definitely close." Arawn confirmed as it began to rain. He sighed and adjusted the hood of his dark grey hoodie. "Let's get this over with, before she catches pneumonia." Boretta shot him an amused look. "I hate handling sick people." Arawn added.

* * *

Erik, Marie, Alex and Logan all slipped as quickly as they dared through the moonlit woods, searching for any sign of me or Jubilee. It was getting late and they knew there was a definite chance that I'd already been caught by the Shadow King, or worse, but they weren't giving up hope just yet. If anyone did, the other X men suspected that Erik might beat the shit out of them. Needless to say the trip there had been terrifying.

"Stop." Logan whispered just loudly enough to get the others' attention. They all stopped and dropped into a crouch. Erik looked questioningly at Logan. "Someone's coming." Logan whispered. Erik closed his eyes and felt around them with his magnekinesis. Two men were coming towards them from the left. They were heavily armed. Erik grinned. _How kind of them._

"I've got them." He announced, not even bothering to whisper as they came into view. They started at the sound of his voice and pointed thier rifles at him. He stood up, still grinning and with a wave of his hand they'd been slammed up against the two nearest trees. One tried to shoot, not bothering really to aim.

"Havok!" Marie shouted, grabbing his arm. Erik caught the bullet before it hit the blond and redirected it into the thug's leg.

"Ah, ah." Erik chastened. "You know we only need one of you alive." The thugs remained silent.

"What do you know about—?" Marie began to ask the other thug… spit on her. Erik and Logan exchanged a look. Logan looked back at the thug that had just spit on Marie and extended his claws.

"You can go ahead and kill me, Freak. I'm not telling you anything." Said the thug. Logan took a step closer, growling.

"You're really loyal for a bunch of kidnappers." Alex remarked.

"We serve a greater purpose." The thug returned. Marie sighed, shaking her head.

"Fuck it. We haven't got time for this." She said, pulling off her glove. "Francis better thank me for this." She grabbed the thug's jaw and began to absorb his life force, letting go once she'd gotten hold of his short term memory. He passed out as soon as she released him. She stumbled and Alex caught her arm to steady her. Erik knocked the other thug out with his rifle and dropped them unceremoniously.

"You alright, Kid?" Logan asked. Marie nodded, catching her breath.

"Yeah, I'm fine. They got Francis about twenty minutes ago. The little girl's still hidin'." Marie informed them. "They don't think she could've gotten far after he collapsed."

"Where?" Erik asked sharply. Marie pointed back in the direction the two thugs had come form. Erik immediately sped off towards the cave.

"Erik!" Alex called after him. Erik ignored him. "Damn it!"

* * *

"Where are you hiding then, Little One?" Arawn called, stepping slowly towards the cave. He'd doubled back the moment he'd left the others' line of sight. "Oh, come now, Child. I know you're there. I'm not going to hurt you." His dark, copper-colored, eyes snapped to a certain cluster of shadows at the sound of a frightened sniff. "_There_ you are." He observed, dropping down onto his haunches and holding out a hand towards Jubilee's hiding place. "Come on." He coaxed again and she reluctantly came out from behind her rock, creeping anxiously over to him. "That's it. You hurt at all?" He inquired noticing the smears of blood down the front of her jumper. She shook her head. "Good. You cold? Yeah, thought so. Here you are." He took off his hoodie and wrapped it around her. "Now, let's have a little chat, eh? We have much to discuss."

* * *

Erik sped into the clearing. He paused and knelt down next to the smear of blood I'd left on the roots of the tree where we'd taken refuge. He could hear the rustling of the others close behind and… He stood up, his attention shifting to the little cave to his left. There were two voices talking quietly inside it. He could only just hear them. A boy…No a teenager, and… Yes. That was definitely a little girl. He padded silently towards the cave latching on to the weapons that he sensed inside with his magnetism.

"It's difficult to explain, but I am not your enemy. I—" Arawn stopped and turned to look back at his knives. He raised an eyebrow, mildly curious at the sensation of the metal blades vibrating in their sheathes behind his shoulders. "Hmm, It seems we have company." He observed, getting up and strolling out of the cave. Jubilee followed after him a bit more carefully.

"Who are you?" Erik demanded. Arawn grabbed Jubilee's hand and pulled her over to him, eying Erik with a neutral expression.

"I have many names." He replied calmly, though he was technically holding a small child in front of him, which could be read in a number of ways. "You must be Erik Lensherr. Amahl's mentioned you a couple times. A magnekinetic if I'm not mistaken." Marie and Alex who were now watching the interaction from a few yards behind Erik, exchanged a look at that. 'Amahl?' Marie mouthed. Alex shrugged, looking equally non-plussed by the utterance.

"Where's my son?" Erik snapped, glaring down at the boy. Arawn nodded back towards the Shadow King's current hideout.

"I sent them back to the mansion. He required care." He answered, unbothered. Jubilee fidgeted and fussed a bit in his arms in response. He leaned down to address her. "Shhh. None of that." He coaxed quietly and she stilled. He wiped the tear from her cheek before returning his attention to Erik.

"Erik…" Marie warned, catching sight of the silhouettes moving closer through the trees. Logan extended his claws again, growling deeply. Jubilee tensed, bowing her head so that more of her long black hair fell to completely mask her face.

"Release her." Erik said.

"What, should I give her to you, then?" Arawn quipped. "I don't know you. Why would I trust _you_ with a child?" Erik lunged forward and grabbed Arawn's throat, prompting Jubilee to duck back into the safety of the cave. Marie darted down the hill to grab her but instead dropped to the ground when the Shadow King's men opened fire. Erik easily deflected the bullets fired at him with his magnetism while Alex took the two men closest to him with a plasma burst, setting some bushes afire in the process.

Logan charged at the two remaining goons and stabbed one in the chest with his claws. The other shot him in the shoulder. He slashed the side of the guy's face, causing Arawn to wince in sympathy.

Marie got up and headed for Jubilee. Then an unfortunately familiar impression of white noise filled their minds, bringing them to their knees. Arawn coughed and gasped in air, taking a step back and away from Erik just in case. Marie was writhing in pain at his feet.

"Don't you think you've gone a bit—Oh. Look out." Arawn warned calmly, catching sight of Logan stubbornly dragging himself over to Moss to attack. She turned to him just as he threw himself at her. She hit him over the head with her revolver, then shot him in the head while he was down.

"Logan!" Alex cried out.

"Miss Moss!" Arawn objected, sounding surprisingly stern.

"Can it, Kiddo." Moss replied, unrepentant. "This isn't a goddamn circus. Try to remember, we're not all as lucky as you."

"_That_ is abundantly clear." Said Arawn as he eyed Logan's 'corpse'.

"Where's the girl?" The thug with the wounded face asked, coming up behind Moss. "You've got her, right?" Arawn ducked into the cave and scooped Jubilee up in his arms.

"Aw." Moss said, seeing the way the girl, wrapped in Arawn's hoodie, was burrowed into his chest. "What a cutie. Here, I'll deliver her to the King."

"I've got her." Arawn replied, then turned to address the remaining military types. "Moss: you're with me, and… ah, Stanley!"

"Yes. That's me." Stanley confirmed, pleased that the kid had finally gotten his name right.

"You're in charge here. Get this cleaned up. The prisoners are to be delivered alive. Understood?"

"Understood."

"Perfect. Good luck."

* * *

Erik, Alex, and Marie waited silently in their cages in the basement. Alex was still unable to pull his gaze away from Logan's motionless body, aka his cellmate. In the cell next to his, Marie was curled up on the cot watching her own cellmate pace back and forth while he brooded.

"Can't you just…?" Marie did jazz hands, looking questioningly up at Erik. He stopped pacing to regard her grimly.

"I've tried. The cage is electrified." He explained.

"Shit!" Alex yelped, scrambling away from the bars. "Why the hell didn't you say anything?!"

"He probably knew you'd panic like that." Logan's voice ground out unexpectedly.

"Logan! You're okay!" Alex exclaimed.

"Yeah." Logan said, pushing himself up off the floor and cracking his neck. They became more alert at the sound of people coming down the stairs. Moss came up to Marie and Erik's cell along with the guy Logan had slashed.

"Erik." Moss acknowledged. Erik glared at her. "Just you. It's time to see your son." Erik exchanged a look with Marie before nodding to Moss and stepping back from the door.

* * *

The Shadow King, once again in the rich bachelor's body, was standing over my bed when Erik was escorted in. The boy he'd met before by the cave was sitting on the black, velvet chaise-longue on my other side with Jubilee still nestled in his arms. The boy actually appeared oddly reminiscent of an elf or a pixie from an old fairytale. His pale grey skin and reddish eyes were offset by spiky white hair that was noticeably black at the roots, probably bleached within an inch of its life. That is, if his prominent black eyebrows were any indication. _Seriously, what is it with the Shadow King and Aryan types? It cannot be healthy._ Erik was reflecting shrewdly.

I wondered if Farouk had chosen this room for me out of spite. It had the same competing patterns and god-awful color scheme as the study I'd broken into earlier. In fact, it was pretty much that room in another incarnation. Erik didn't really notice. All that his mind consciously registered was my body lying pale and motionless in the bed, hooked up to a respirator.

"What have you done to him?!" He demanded, starting forward. Stanley grabbed his arms and held him back.

"Oh, this wasn't me. A few of my guards got a little over zealous I'm afraid, had to be put down." The Shadow King responded, sounding as if he were discussing a few rabid animals rather than human beings. "Terrible bother. Apocalypse here did warn me, but you know how it is with kids. I guess I'm just as guilty of that fault as anyone." Erik glared murderously at the other man before shifting his gaze to the aforementioned teen. What he saw threw him off balance for a second. 'Apocalypse' was sitting with one arm wrapped protectively around Jubilee, his hand carding absently through her hair while he watched my face, deep in thought. He was the picture of calm consideration, seeming completely unaffected by the exchange between the adults around him, perhaps even unaware. His fiery, copper-red eyes flickered up to meet Erik's. _Nope, he's definitely aware. _Erik looked back to Farouk. He didn't really have time to dwell on that at the moment. "I have to ask, how did you think you were going to pull this off?" Farouk inquired, sounding merely curious. "You had to know I wasn't going to just let him go."

"What do you want with them?" Erik returned. "We know about the kidnappings. You can't possibly need them all for hosts."

"No. I don't." Farouk admitted. "You're going to answer my question. There's no way you're getting away now so we might as well try to get along."

"I will find a way."

"Sorry Son, but we've been over this. You just don't have the means to defeat me." The Shadow King said, sounding amused. "And believe me. I'd love the challenge. I haven't seen a trick like that in centuries."

"Well then, watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat." I quipped, pulling out of Arawn's arms to face the others for the first time. The Shadow King's eyebrow's nearly melded with his hairline at the sight of Jubilee's glowing eyes. I didn't give them any more time than that to react, just shot a bolt of electricity into him, not killing him, but knocking him out. Erik struggled free from the thug's grip with the help of his magnetism and I used Jubilee's mutation to fry the fucker. Arawn grabbed Jubilee's hands, preventing me from using her to fire any more lightning bolts. Asshole! Erik threw Moss backwards into the wall. She let out a furious roar and incapacitated him using her own mutation.

"You little brat!" She shouted, hurling a throwing knife at my tiny host. I flinched. What! It was a knife! But the knife never reached us. I looked up, surprised to see a slender grey hand wrapped around the blade mere inches away from Jubilee's face. Arawn flipped the knife around so that he was holding it properly, ignoring the smear of ruby-black blood dripping down it. He held it up, shooting Moss a questioning look.

"Really, Jamie? I expected more of you."

"Oh, shut up, Kiddo. He's a menace! I'm ending him." Moss shot back, pulling out her gun.

"_She's_ an infant." Arawn pointed out, standing up and consequently getting in her way.

"And that's a crying shame." Moss retorted. "Back off! I'm taking them both out."

"I have rules, as Amahl is aware. This is one of them." Arawn informed her. "Furthermore, said fearless leader wants him alive. So, why don't you holster that weapon of yours before things escalate?"

Moss narrowed her eyes at him. She was sick of being talked down to by some punk kid.

"Get out of the way." She snapped. Apocalypse crossed his arms over his chest, running his now scarlet eyes over her with an almost bored expression on his face. "Fine. I didn't like you anyway." Moss concluded, then opened fire on us both.


	10. Don't Punch Cthulhu

**Chapter 10: Don't Punch Cthulhu**

Charles looked up at the sound of a knock on his study door.

"Charles? It's me. Is it okay if I come in?" Raven's voice questioned from the other side. Charles got up and unlocked the door, then hastily retreated to the sofa. Raven eyed him with concern as she entered. "How are you feeling?"

"I'm safe for now." Charles replied. "I believe I can suppress it as long as I remain calm. I'm sorry if I scared you earlier. I… I was upset."

"Are you really sure you should be fighting this?" Raven asked, sitting in the armchair and pulling it up to face him. Charles smiled weakly.

"I am fairly sure, yes." He confirmed. Raven frowned at him looking like she wanted to argue, but he continued. "This isn't about denying my mutation, Raven. This isn't even the first time it's happened. It's just more sustained."

"I don't remember…"

"You wouldn't. It all happened before your arrival. We were practically babies…" Charles trailed off. There was a haunted look in his usually bright, blue eyes. "Mother told you how I had a twin?"

"Yeah, I remember, but there was some kind of accident in your nursery and…" Raven's brow furrowed when she noticed the guilty way he'd begun to avoid her gaze. "Charles! You were like, two years old! You _couldn't_ have been responsible!"

"We were fighting over a toy." Charles confessed quietly. Raven just stared at him, shaking her head in disbelief. "I didn't mean to—I didn't know what I was doing. I just wanted him to let go and then he just sort of… Flew. He was so still. The maid ran over and grabbed me. She was screaming for someone to help us, but it was too late. I already couldn't feel him anymore…" Charles sniffed and wiped away a stray tear, still refusing to look at his sister. "There were a few more incidents, but Mother just kept covering them up. I'm not sure how much she knew, or what she thought it was. No one else died, at least. When I was eight, I locked it all away. I thought that it was all over."

"Charles…" Raven said quietly, uncertain what she wanted to say, and pulled him into a hug. "I'm sorry… I'm so sorry."

Charles sniffed, clinging to her for a moment as he tried to gather his wits. The objects on the desk behind Raven were beginning to vibrate.

"You need to go." Charles observed, wiping covertly at his cheek. Raven glanced back over her shoulder at the objects on the trembling oak desk, but then just turned back to Charles to fuss with the navy blue throw draped around his shoulders.

"It's getting pretty cold in here." She noted, not meeting his eyes.

"Raven…"

"Maybe you should migrate to a room where the windows aren't all shattered." Raven continued ignoring him. Charles grabbed her hands and forced her to look at him.

"Raven, you need to leave. I'll be alright, I promise, but it isn't safe for you to be here right now."

Raven drew in a deep breath before nodding and standing to leave. She paused to place a quick kiss on the top of his head before exiting the room. Charles ran a hand through his hair and shut his eyes, flopping back on the couch. He had to get ahold of himself. This simply couldn't continue. He needed to be better when the others returned. He was going to see Erik when he came home, and their son. It had to be under control, so it would be, he decided, getting to work on the solution.

* * *

"Get out of the way." Moss snapped, aiming her pistol at Apocalypse's chest. He crossed his arms. It was clear that he wasn't going to budge. "Fine. I didn't like you anyway." Moss concluded and opened fire.

"No!" Erik protested, reaching out an arm instinctively from where he lay on the floor, but alas, his powers were still being suppressed. Arawn's body slumped face-down on the floor in a pool of ruby-black blood. Jubilee was huddled behind him on the floor with her arms held up to shield her head.

"Seriously?" Moss remarked indignantly at Jubilee's completely uninjured state. The Blonde shrugged it off. "That kid must've had some thick skin."

"You will find that was a rash decision on your part." I told her before receding from Jubilee's mind. Moss frowned at the little girl's normalizing appearance, reloading her revolver then snapped her attention to me. I sat up and pulled out my breathing tube, coughing and gasping in air. She aimed her gun at my head.

"Eugh! Tastes like plastic."I remarked. She smirked hatefully, pulling back the hammer on her revolver. "You never learn, do you." I said, finally acknowledging her.

"Famous last words." Moss returned. She was about to pull the trigger when a wet-sounding cough broke the tense silence. "Holy shit…" She gasped taking a hasty step away from Arawn. The others all stared as he pushed himself up off the ruined carpet looking understandably annoyed. He sat up and the bullets rolled off of him onto the floor. Moss aimed her gun at his head. I scoffed.

"I'd give that an F+." I quipped, stretching. Arawn ripped open his stained and tattered, black, button down shirt to pull one more bullet out of a rapidly vanishing wound in his chest.

"What the fuck?" Moss exclaimed. Apocalypse shot her a bemused expression, before shifting his attention over his shoulder to Jubilee.

"You alright, _Cariad_?" He inquired. She nodded mutely. "Good." He replied and swept her up into his arms, depositing her onto the bed beside me. "There you go." He turned back to Moss, pausing to regard Erik briefly before he spoke. "You were saying?"

"I killed you." Moss said. She shook herself. "That's it? You're a regenerator? Why the hell didn't anybody tell me!?"

"Mmm…' Apocalypse acknowledged. Moss looked thoughtful, then snapped her gaze up to meet his. Instead of incapacitating him with her psionic attack it was reflected right back at her, causing her to stumble back into the table behind her. She fell to the ground, knocking a chair over on her way down. Arawn raised an eyebrow, watching this with passive detachment. Erik gasped and pushed himself up off the floor as Moss's hold on him failed.

"One moment." Apocalypse told him and stepped forward taking Moss's gun. Erik went over to check me for injuries, eyeing the other mutant warily. "Now, as I've mentioned, Miss Moss, I have rules." Apocalypse explained, kneeling down in front of her, then he paused, coughing a bit. He spit a bloody bullet out into his hand. "Ugh. Excuse me. Where was I?"

"Your rules." Erik supplied helpfully.

"Yes. Thank you. My Rules." Apocalypse continued. "Three of which refer specifically to killing. One: No killing infants (It is unfair and unkind). Two: No killing interesting individuals like young master Xavier here. And last but not least is number three: You do not kill me."

Moss blinked up at him, looking like a cornered wild animal.

"Not to wreck the mood or anything…" I cut in, earning myself a reproachful scowl from Erik. "But just out of curiosity, when we escape, are you going to get in the way?" Apocalypse slowly turned to give me a look that said, 'Seriously, Child?'

"Cheeky, aren't we." He responded, with a spark of amusement in his fiery, red eyes.

"Well?" I prompted.

"Francis!" Erik rebuked.

"Thank you." Apocalypse said. He turned back to Moss and any trace of his mirth left his visage in the blink of an eye. He looked her over with an unreadable expression. Erik's hold on my arm tightened, so perhaps _he_ recognized it. "Hmmm… Perhaps it would be best if there were no children present to witness what I am about to do." Apocalypse reflected. Erik didn't need any further prompting; he just scooped Jubilee up off the bed and wrapped his other arm around me for support, quickly dragging us out of the room.

Part way down the hall we stopped at the sound of Moss' horrified scream coming from the room behind us. Jubilee clamped her hands over her ears and looked back at the door in shock. Erik put a hand on her shoulder and continued to lead us away.

"He'll probably still come after us once he's finished with that one." I noted. Erik shushed me. "Just thought you ought to know."

* * *

Charles lay back on the sofa, resting his head on the armrest and closed his eyes. He opened the in the dream. Looking to his right, he saw his two-year-old twin brother Michael building a palace out of scarlet blocks. They were in the nursery, but all the colors around them had dimmed, making everything appear bleak and monochromatic, except for Michael and his blocks.

Charles sat up and shrugged off the scarlet throw, leaving it behind on the black-leather couch.

"How did I get here?" Charles asked, coming to sit on the floor opposite the little ghost. He didn't really expect an answer. It was just a memory after all, a projection that was still too young to talk. Still, he figured it couldn't hurt to try. "I sealed this off ages ago." Charles continued, studying the phantom, who just continued to play with his blocks. "It _was_ sealed away. I didn't have any other incidents since Dr. Morris. There have been several triggering events since then—But why would Amahl Farouk give me _more_ power? He wouldn't. So: How did I get here?"

Charles got up and began to explore the nursery. Everything was as it had been on the day of the incident, minus Miss Abby, their nurse and Charles himself. Charles looked back to the couch. As usual, he'd brought it into the dream with him, creating a portal of sorts, to allow him an easy escape from the dream-world. It was gone. His grandfather's silver-handled cane was lying on the floor in its place on the edge of the colorless, Persian rug.

"I left that propped up on my desk." Charles noted, narrowing his eyes suspiciously as he considered the offending object. Charles Francis Xavier is nothing if not controlled. When he uses his ability, whether to project onto the astral plane or to explore his own or another's mind with his telepathy, he is always precise. He never brings anything in with him without consciously intending to. Seeing unexpected projections within a dreamscape was one thing. This was wrong. His point of exit should not change. "I'm not alone." Charles observed.

* * *

Marie and Alex stopped talking and looked up towards the stairs at the sound of someone coming down the stairs. Logan stood and sniffed the air.

"It's them. Erik and Francis. They've got the girl with them." He reported. A moment later, we came into view. Marie stood to greet us.

"No. Stay back." I corrected. "You too, Vater." I added over my shoulder, barely registering his surprise over our link. I transitioned, using the resultant boom to break open the door to Marie's cage. The circuit keeping the bars electrified short-circuited as an added bonus.

"Francis!" Marie exclaimed, running out and grabbing my shoulders so she could look me over.

"I'll live, Mammina." I assured her, then looked to where Erik was busting Logan and Alex out with his magnetism. "We should go."

"What about the other prisoners?" Alex asked, frowning.

"Not my problem."

"Francis!" Marie and Logan scolded.

"Give me a break. I have been locked in a cage for weeks, shot, electrocuted, and nearly murdered twice. I'm allowed to be a bit impatient!" I snapped. Marie stared at me with frighteningly watery eyes. "Don't cry." I added hastily.

"She pulled me into a hug. I patted her shoulder uncomfortably, thankful that she'd reigned herself in this much.

"Do you know where the others are?" Logan asked after a brief hesitation. I pointed back over my shoulder.

"Back that way and turn left for Cain. They've moved the other one so…"

"Thanks kid." Logan replied, turning to Erik. "I'll see if I can get them out, and meet up with you at the rendezvous point." Erik nodded and Logan ran off to fetch you. Marie released me adding.

"I'll help." And sped off after him.

Erik looked none too pleased at that, but she was gone before he could do much to dissuade her.

"She'll be fine." I assured him. Jubilee walked up and slipped her hand in mine, looking up at him questioningly. Erik sighed and began to lead us back to the stairs.

"Keep sharp." He instructed Alex. Alex nodded.

"Hey, Look at it this way." I continued. "At least most of the Shadow Kings minions have already been injured pre-escape this time."

"You know, sometimes I worry about your humanity." Alex told me. I smirked.

"Only sometimes?"

"Well, they _are_ bad people." He pointed out diplomatically.

"Spoken like a true blond." I returned. He glared at me.

"What the F—"

"Boys!" Erik cut in sharply, waiting until we were both looking up at him before saying. "Be silent."

* * *

Charles cast his gaze around the room, searching for other clues about the foreign influence in his subconscious. There would be other details that were off, things that didn't belong. Just as every telepath has their own unique signature, every mind leaves a unique imprint on the dreamscape. The really interesting thing was that there was no telepathic signature, obvious or not. Whoever this was, they weren't registering as a telepath at all. _There!_ Charles walked over and pulled the offending book from its place on the bookcase. It was a worn, leather-bound book that did not belong there.

"Grimm's Fairy Tales." He read aloud. "Interesting… You know I actually have one of these upstairs in my room. Cain brought it up from the library when Raven had the measles, but…" He trailed off when he saw the faded writing on the last page. He recognized the handwriting immediately. "Can't be." He swallowed and snapped the book shut with a loud clap, returning to his search.

He scanned the rest of the room but he couldn't seem to pick up anything else amiss. He knew there was something right there in front of him that he was missing. A thought suddenly drifted through his mind. _Why am I here? _He had come here to find a way to control his telekinesis had he not? Maybe it was time to try that out. He closed his eyes and reached out, no longer depending on the usual five senses, but on that other sense, feeling the vibrations of the different objects around him. Something did stand out. It felt entirely unfamiliar, so he called it into his hand, opening his eyes at the feeling of something soft but weighted in his grip. It was a doll. The face showed obvious signs of wear. There were cracks in the porcelain and what looked like a burn mark marred one painted cheek. The dress had been torn and re-sewn in three separate places and the fingers on one hand had broken off and had been lovingly reattached. Charles carefully tucked the doll under one arm and knelt down across from 'Michael', looking up briefly as a little boy with deep auburn hair ran past the doorway laughing. _Red_. Charles thought to himself. It was so obvious now. He remembered the dark-blue blanket that Raven had wrapped around his shoulders before she left, and the ivory colored blocks that he and Michael had been given to play with when they were small. 'Michael was watching him intently now. Charles smiled at him and held out the doll.

"I believe this is yours, Love." He told her calmly. The slender, redheaded, little girl held out her arms to accept the treasured toy. "I read these to you when you were little." Charles realized holding up the Grimm's Fairytales. "Or I will depending on how much things have changed." The little girl nodded. "You did this?"

The little girl hugged the doll to her chest quickly averting her gaze.

"No, no. I'm not cross with you, I promise." Charles clarified. "I'm merely curious. You've reached out to me somehow. You triggered my latent ability, but why did you reach for me?"

The little girl looked up at him with big, sad eyes and sniffed.

"Find me, please?" She requested. "I'm lost. Please, help me." Charles frowned in concern.

"I don't understand…"

She reached out and grabbed on of his hands. For a second, the image flickered red, changing from a tiny, child's hand to that of a grown woman, then back.

"Professor X?" The woman called. Then she was a girl again. "I want to come home."

* * *

I abruptly halted, ceasing not only to run but to move altogether. It took the others a second to notice and turn back to check on me.

"Francis?" Erik questioned jogging back to me. "What is it?" I didn't respond but closed my eyes reaching out through the familial link. Erik frowned becoming concerned. "Francis? Are you alright?" He clicked his fingers in front of my unseeing eyes.

"Shit." Alex muttered. Jubilee, who he happened to be carrying on his back, covered his mouth. "Sorry, Squirt."

I blinked, coming back to myself.

"Sorry, what?" I asked Erik his frown only deepened.

"What was that?"

"Something happened to the link. You didn't feel it?" I said, not quite surprised. Erik's eyes narrowed.

"What happened?" Alex inquired, pulling Jubilee's hand away from his face.

"A thing." I replied beginning to walk. "We should keep going. They're going to catch up." We didn't get much farther into the woods before they did indeed catch up to us. Erik grabbed me and pulled me behind him. I rolled my eyes. Like that would help. Arawn came strolling out to the front of the group.

"So, _I'm_ fine." I observed. Alex looked incredulously at me. "What? I'm interesting."

"Boys." Erik reminded us. I made a zipping motion over my lips.

"How many times am I going to have to come and fetch you?" Arawn asked as the four soldiers moved to surround us.

"I would suggest that you cease." Erik replied stoically. Arawn smiled.

"I'll bet you would." He commented, clearly amused.

"Just this once, don't take it personally." I advised him.

"What?" Arawn asked with a frown.

_**You'll want to DUCK.**_ I projected to the other X men. I leapt, spinning, into the air and transitioned, sending the thugs around us flying back into trees, but this time instead of switching right back I landed with one arm outstretched to Apocalypse's chest. When I solidified my hand was right in the center of his heart. A jolt of electricity danced over his body, then I yanked my hand away, covered in pitch black blood and heard him drop to the forest floor. I stood and surveyed my handiwork.

"Yep. He's going to take it personally." I concluded. Alex and Jubilee were staring at me openmouthed. Erik just looked resigned. "What do you want? He'll get better!" I said defensively. "Honestly! …Anyway, we should be gone when he wakes, or would you really rather play fair?" A muscle in Erik's jaw twitched but he nodded in agreement. Weird, why the hell is he mad?

"He's right. Let's keep moving."

* * *

Pietro jolted awake in his bed, his blue-grey eyes snapping open to scan the hotel room which the CIA had allowed him while his apartment was being scrutinized. He reached up and placed a hand to his head as he sat up. He'd felt _something_ over our link. _What the fuck was that?_ It didn't hurt, so there was that. He sighed in relief when he felt my signature ever-so-faintly as it brushed his mind.

_What did you do?_ He projected fondly.

_**Wasn't me.**_

His eyes widened and his anxiety returned.

_What do you mean it wasn't you?! What was that? I've never felt anything like that before, from you or X._

_**I doubt it was him. I have no idea. You good?**_

_I think so. Your Dad?_

…

_Fluke?_

_**He's not with us. Can't reach him directly. **_

_What?_

_**Oh, Vater's becoming impatient. Gotta go.**_

"Francis!?" Pietro called out pointlessly, then threw his pillow at the wall and got out of bed, pulling on a pair of trousers. He needed to know what was going on, but he couldn't risk breaking cover and knew for a fact that he was being watched. He couldn't even call the mansion due to a wire tap on his phone. There was a knock at his door. _Who the hell could that be, at 6 am?_

"Captain Kinkaid?" He greeted the unexpected visitor.

"Hi, Agent Frank." The Captain replied. "I'm sorry, Sir. I know it's late, but you told me to come to you if I needed help with anything extraordinary? Well I've got something for you."


	11. The Silver Girl

**Chapter 11: The Silver Girl**

Erik ascended the stairs, headed towards Charles' study. He paused, frowning when he neared the door. He should have been able to feel Charles' signature at the edges of his consciousness by now… There was nothing.

"Charles?" He called as he entered. Charles was lying on the couch with a navy blue throw draped over him, seemingly asleep. _He must be out of body again._ Erik told himself, trying to calm his racing heart. The events of the past day or two were beginning to get to him. He knelt down next to Charles and touched his cheek. His skin felt cool, but the room was pretty drafty. Erik checked for a pulse anyway. Yep, the stress was definitely getting to him.

Charles' eyes fluttered open at the touch.

"Erik?" He questioned blearily. Erik let out the breath he'd been holding and pulled Charles close. "Oh, I'm sorry…" Charles said, returning the embrace. "I'm alright." He assured Erik gently, placing a quick kiss on the shell of his ear before adding. "I'm better than alright, really."

Erik pulled back just far enough to look Charles in the eye, a quizzical expression on his face. Charles smiled broadly at him.

"I'm better." He announced, looking quite proud of himself. Erik raised an eyebrow at him. Charles brushed a strand of hair out of Erik's face. "You can stay here as long as you like. I'm safe now."

* * *

"Ugh! My God! Why?!" I protested, startling Hank into dropping the syringe he'd been preparing. Raven crossed her arms over her chest, waiting for me to explain my seemingly random outburst. I was busy pointlessly rubbing at my eyes.

"What the hell, Francis?" Alex asked from the chair to Raven's right, which he had just ceased spinning. Well, you win some, you lose some. I'd been hoping he'd manage to break it. So I could watch him fall.

"You probably don't want to know. _I_ don't want to know." I responded irritably. "I need to wash my brain!"

"Wait, what?" Alex queried, confused.

"Charles is better. I hate being a telepath!"

"Why would that…" Hank began, then trailed off, making a face when he got it.

"I need a distraction." I decided. "Right. Now."

"Let's go for a walk." Raven volunteered helpfully, looking uncomfortable. "That's okay right?" She asked Hank.

"Just make sure to monitor him. Don't let him overexert himself." Hank instructed. I jumped up immediately, ready to bolt from the room. "Ah, ah! Wait." Hank warned and gave me the new shot of antibiotics. "Now, you can go." I nodded once and dragged my tired but gloriously-sympathetic aunt out of the room.

"No running please." Hank reminded me. "You're still recovering!"

"You think she can handle it?" Alex said. They stared at each other for a minute before he got up out of Hank's desk chair and left. "You're right. I'll go find Darwin."

* * *

It took a while longer than it should have for me to notice what was wrong, but when I did the effect was fairly dramatic. Darwin was sitting on the bench nearby while I skipped rocks in the reflecting pool. Raven had retired to her room not long after we'd reached the garden and left Darwin to 'take care of me'. It's a bit insulting really. I'm not a child anymore and yet you all still seem to think of me as one no matter what I do, but, I digress.

I was in the middle of skipping a perfectly flat, disk of a stone when it hit me. That is, the realization caused me to falter in mid-movement, making it bounce off of the edge of the pool instead so that it flew back and hit me in the side.

"Ooh! Careful!" Darwin exclaimed, trying not to laugh, and failing "You okay, man?"

"No." I replied distractedly. He stopped laughing at me.

"Hey, are you hurt?" He inquired, getting up from the bench to come and check on me. "You look kinda pale."

"I—What? No. I mean, I don't think there's anything new. I just realized—" I jumped to my feet and hurried back the way we'd come.

"Francis? Hey, slow down!" Darwin called, chasing after me. "You know you aren't supposed to be running." He told me when he caught up.

"I heard."

"Where are you going in such a hurry?'

"I have to talk to Dad."

* * *

Luckily for me, they were finished doing anything… awkward by the time that Darwin and I returned. In fact, Erik and Charles were just leaving his study when we jogged up to them.

"You're not staying locked up?" Darwin observed, then winced at the way that sounded.

"I don't need to anymore." Charles replied, eyeing my bandaged side as if he could see the wound through the cloth and bandages. "Shouldn't you be resting? You've been shot."

"Yes. He should." Darwin confirmed pointedly. I rolled my eyes.

"Bite me."

"Francis." Erik warned. I fidgeted my shoulders testily.

"Whatever." I replied in a rush. "I'm healing nicely, thanks to Apocalypse. How are you better?"

"He had telekinesis issues." Darwin explained innocently. "I guess they're better now."

"I know. How is that?" I asked, not taking my gaze off Charles' face.

"It took some doing." Charles hedged, heading past us to the stairs. I fell into step with him continuing to stare him down.

"As did your new mental block, I'm sure." I accused.

"It's actually more a matter of focus than of effort." Charles amended unrepentantly, heading downstairs.

"And, technically-speaking, it's not really a block per-sé but it still does serve the same purpose." I pointed out. "So why split hairs?"

"Okay, wait a minute. I now have no idea what you're talking about anymore." Darwin remarked, pausing a few steps behind to consider us. Erik remained silent, intently observing our showdown.

"I get it. Very clever." I remarked bitterly, moving to walk backward in front of Charles. "You've found that you can't block me out, because, really, you just can't. So instead, you've created a truly obnoxious set of detours all around one specific section of your mind. It's a good tactic. I'll give you that. However, it does make the real problem even clearer. You're hiding from me."

"As you've mentioned, I'm only hiding one very specific section. Do watch where you're going please. You'll stress your injuries." Charles requested, steering me so that I didn't knock into the suit of armor behind me, then smoothly returning to topic. "You don't need access to everything that goes on in my mind."

Erik and Darwin exchanged a look, relaxing a bit at that. They seemed to be siding with him.

"You've blocked off your memory centers,_ all_ of them. That's a rather dramatic way to prove your point, don't you think?" I said as we neared the dining room.

"Watch out." Raven muttered, half-heartedly from her seat at the table.

"It's my mind. It's my choice whether or not I want to share." Charles replied, gently nudging my shoulder as we entered, to avoid the random chair Sean had left in the way. He must be stoned again.

"Thank you. -It's out of character." I pointed out, ignoring the way that Raven was staring at me. "Believe me, there are parts of your experience that I would_ gladly_ go without." I told Charles, looking pointedly at him and Erik. "You've been made aware that I am a composite entity?" I asked. Charles nodded his confirmation, looking puzzled by my lapse. At that point, I quit using facial expressions. I hate being vulnerable. In the world that I came from, vulnerable meant dead. "You also know what that means, by now." I continued with more confidence.

"Marie mentioned it." Charles acknowledged, still studying my face. Darwin stopped in the doorway, now completely lost. Erik looked equally confused.

"Um... I don't." Raven admitted. I sighed, leaning back against the table while Charles and Erik took their seats.

"A composite entity is a consciousness created by a combination of two other pre-existing entities." I recited, sitting on the tabletop and crossing my legs. Raven pulled her plate away, looking annoyed. I ignored her. "In my case, I'm a bit of Charles plus a bit of Erik. Not a copy, but a combination."

"You don't act like us." Erik thought aloud, clicking his fingers and pointing to the chair across from Raven.

"…I've probably got a little Rogue and Pietro in me now as well, I suppose." I reflected.

"I can see it." Raven decided, looking from me to Erik as I hopped down from my perch and straightened my blue-gray turtleneck. Charles looked at me, then Erik, then smiled warmly. Erik suddenly looked a tad self-conscious.

"Back on topic!" I announced, remembering myself. "Imagine my discomfort when I suddenly found myself locked out of a large portion of my memories with no explanation as to why." Everyone looked from me to Charles at that. Raven's scales flickered.

"I didn't mean to cause you any harm." Charles said guiltily.

"I used to get that a lot, just not from you." I returned.

"I'm sorry." Charles apologized. "I've witnessed something that I can't share with you at present and this was the only way that I could manage to keep it separate."

"You cut me off in order to protect me." I summarized, unconvinced. "If this is about your twin, I'm fairly certain it's a bit late for that." Charles winced, both at my sudden uncertainty and the mention of the incident.

"It isn't. I'm so sorry. I don't know any other way to-"

"I figured that you would be." I told him, cutting off his apology- they get annoying after a while- and looked to the others. "I am so glad that I didn't get that bit. I'll adapt. I just need to find it all again first, though it won't hold indefinitely."

"Francis…" Raven prompted, clearly uncomfortable. "Maybe this would be a good time to go and rest."

"It's about the twin thing, isn't it." I concluded as she herded me out of the kitchen, Darwin following close behind.

"Yes. Shhh." Raven confirmed quietly, leading me out of the room to give Erik and Charles time alone. There was a long pause while they both sat together in silence with Erik watching Charles and Charles avoiding Erik, _again_.

"You never told me you had a twin." Erik finally stated.

"I don't. He's gone." Charles replied, eyeing Raven's abandoned mug. "It's… I'd rather not discuss it." There was another tense silence. "Could you stop staring at me like that?" Erik took a moment to answer.

"How would you prefer that I stare at you?"

That finally got Charles to look at him, albeit out of amused incredulity.

"What?" He inquired with a sort of frown-smile. Erik smiled back.

"It got your attention." Erik noted, tracing the veins on the back of Charles' hand. He could feel the traces of iron pulsing in his veins. It seemed that Erik's powers had intensified somehow in response to his return, or maybe to Charles' recovery. "Are you going to tell me what happened to you?" Charles followed the movement of Erik's thumb with his eyes as he considered his reply.

"I will." Charles told him carefully. "When I'm certain that it's safe." Erik looked up to meet his eyes at that. "Things have gotten… complicated. I'm not certain I could even explain it."

"Charles?" Erik prompted. Charles slipped his fingers through Erik's.

"I saw something… impossible." Charles shook his head, unable to explain it further. Erik eyed him uncertainly. "I don't really understand it all, but I know what I need to do next."

"What _we_ need to do."

"If you can trust me with this."

"What do we need to do?" Erik replied patiently, as if it wasn't even a question. _Out of the two of us, how can he think that __**he'd**__ be the one not to trust?_ Erik wondered. Charles smiled faintly at the show of faith.

"There's someone that we need to find."

* * *

"She ran away from home after it all happened." Captain Kinkaid explained, barely noticing as Peter shamelessly stole his forgotten Danish. He was too worked up to enjoy it anyway. "Shelly didn't say anything about it until I called them the next day. They've looked for her—_I've_ looked, but there was no trace of her anywhere. Her friends haven't seen her. She hasn't contacted anyone else in the family…"

"But she ran away. She wasn't taken." Peter clarified, his cool grey eyes resting on a snooty middle-aged woman at the table beside theirs until she quit eavesdropping.

"Yes. Given what happened at the party, it seems pretty understandable." Captain Kinkaid replied slowly.

"Her Sweet Sixteen." Peter said, finishing his coffee. Captain Kinkaid watched him, knowing that he was definitely missing something.

"Yes, Sir. Sorry, is that relevant?" He inquired frustrated. "One would think the whole 'turning silver and flowing out of her chair' part would get the stronger reaction."

Peter shrugged, covertly glancing over the other man's shoulder to check on the CIA agent tailing him.

"You get used to it." He remarked, putting on his trench-coat. "It seems that some things never change. …I'll find your neice for you." Peter announced, tossing some cash onto the table to pay for their meal. "But tell me, Captain. Do you intend to return her to her parent's care?"

Kinkaid paused for a second, considering the younger man before admitting.

"No."

Peter nodded.

"Good. Let's get started then. I think I know where we can begin." He said, leading the Captain out of the café. After they stepped out onto the street, he placed a hand on Kinkaid's shoulder to stop him.

"What?"

"Actually. You go on ahead. I'll meet up with you on the subway." Peter informed him smoothly. "I've got to lose a tail."

"Ah." Kinkaid responded. "I'll see you then."

"Certainly." Peter assured him, smiling until the other's back was turned. Then he started off in the opposite direction, casually putting on his hat. The agent followed him from a discrete distance for two blocks. Peter turned down a dead end alley on purpose. The agent followed him in, rubbing his eye absently when a sudden breeze blew dust into it. He found the alley inexplicably empty. There were no doors. The other end was another brick wall.

"What the?" The Agent muttered, stumped. Walking away, down the block, back the way they'd come, Peter smiled. He still enjoyed that. They never noticed the blur as he passed them. Humans, so unobservant.

* * *

"Hey kiddo!" A gruff voice said. Cecily twitched, feeling a beefy hand prod her leg. She snapped awake, sitting up on the bench and pushing her baby blue beanie away from her eyes.

"What?" She breathed sleepily.

"This your train? It's leavin'" The man said, gesturing towards the train in front of them.

"The train…" She muttered still waking up. Then she remembered. "Oh sh—" She scooped up her backpack and ran forward as the train started moving. "Wait! Wait!" She shouted, her pale white curls bouncing as she ran alongside, pounding on the door. "Wait! Let me on!" She jumped up a little, trying to peek in through the glass, cursing her short stature as it meant she had to run even harder after the failed attempt. "Come on, please! Yes! Thank you!"

"Here you go, Sweetheart." The kindly old conductor said, helping her on.

"Thanks." Cecily said breathlessly.

"Got your ticket?"

"Oh! Sorry. Here." She passed the ticket over.

"Alright, Cecily. Oh, that's a pretty name." He said kindly. "You need any help finding your folks?"

"Oh no. I'm sure I'll be able to track them down."

"Well if you do, you feel free to find me. Okay, Hon?"

"I will. Thank you so much." Cecily lied and went to find a seat. That had been way too close.


	12. Battle Lines

**Chapter 12: Battle Lines**

Erik growled and pinned Charles down on the grass. Charles let out an undignified squeak as he realized that he was, in fact, trapped, but recovered quickly.

"You're so conveniently small." Erik taunted, well, half taunted, half thought aloud as he considered ways Charles could compensate for it in a fight. Charles' eyes flicked over to his cane. It was still lying out of reach near the bench to his right.

"Yes, but surprisingly flexible." He returned cheekily, lashing out at his opponent with his good leg. Erik let out a subtle cough and repositioned himself to pin Charles' legs as well. Charles pouted.

"You're not even trying." Erik accused. Charles frowned.

"I _am_ trying! I can't fight like you. As you've pointed out, I'm not exactly physically imposing am I? And you, on the other hand, are you: all big and strong and generally behemothy!"

"I've witnessed your fighting before. You're holding back. Stop it." Erik insisted. Charles reflected on that for a second. "You're hesi… Wh-?" Erik lost his train of thought as Charles let out a rather _distracting_ sound and wriggled under him. Charles then smirked up at him, pulled his hand free and slapped him, before switching their positions.

"Feel better?" Charles asked, standing up. Erik rolled to his feet and grabbed Charles' arm, continuing their match without a word. Charles countered with an elbow to his ribs followed by a punch with his other arm. Erik caught his fist and spun him around to hold him to his chest.

"I don't think that 'behemothy' is actually a word." Erik stated into Charles' ear.

"It served my point, regardless." Charles replied, breathlessly.

"If I were a real opponent you'd be dead by now." Erik informed him, sounding irritated by the thought.

"If you were a real opponent, I wouldn't have let you come close enough to grab me in the first place." Charles pointed out, then stamped on Erik's foot and pulled out of his grip.

"Some of our enemies are immune to telepathy." Erik persisted, his silver eyes shining with aggravation.

"You would never let them get to me." Charles said earnestly, pushing his damp hair out of his eyes with one hand. This had the opposite effect on Erik from the one expected.

"What if I couldn't stop them?" Erik shouted, straightening up to glare down at Charles, their sparring match now abandoned. "What if something had happened to me? You need to take this seriously!"

"Nothing's going to happen to you." Charles responded at a normal volume.

"Charles!"

"I know that's not the point but…" Charles sighed, getting frustrated. "Is this about Farouk?"

"Stop wasting time! I've said what this is about!" Erik shot back a little too harshly. "I can't protect you at every moment!"

"I've never asked you to!" Charles snapped, then took a deep breath, reminding himself that it wouldn't help to yell at him, and continued in a calmer tone. "I understand that you might be traumatized by recent events, but I don't think—"

"You're right. You don't think! We are living under threat of attack and you can't keep blundering into things like a naïve idiot just because—"

"Erik. Calm down." Charles warned, his face stern. He knew that Erik hadn't meant the insult. He was under a lot of stress, but Charles wasn't going to put up with this for much longer.

"I will not—" Erik continued angrily. Charles crossed his arms over his chest, ignoring the pain that was beginning to pulse up his damaged leg.

"Calm down, or I'm leaving." He said with finality. Erik stopped and looked him over. He seemed to realize that Charles wasn't bluffing. When he was certain that Erik wasn't going to start shouting again, Charles spoke. "I'm not trying to patronize you. I am not a warrior but, neither am I going to be struck down the moment you look away. You have been through a terrible ordeal, and I can understand why you might feel insecure. Perhaps you should work through your anxiety first before you try anymore training."  
"This isn't mere anxiety." Erik said more quietly.

"I know that I need to be cautious, but the fact is, if they've already reached me, fighting them isn't going to be an option." Charles admitted. "The good news is that I don't believe our current enemies are likely to kill me if they don't have to. Perhaps I can find a way to use that."

"Perhaps." Erik conceded sarcastically, yet feeling a bit guilty as he watched Charles limp over to sit down on the bench and retrieve his cane. "But I don't think that even you could talk your way out of everything."

"Even I?" Charles echoed with a wan smile.

"You can be very persuasive." Erik assured him with a shrug, coming to sit next to him on the bench. "Even without using telepathy."

"Well then, I expect I could at least buy enough time."

Erik shot Charles a solemn look.

"We're not alone, you know. Failing you, I would imagine that one or more of the others would attempt to help me. Not that it matters, because nothing 's going to happen to you."

I walked up to them on my way back from the gardens.

"Is this some awkwardly dire conversation that I'm not meant to be tracking?" I asked belatedly. Charles leaned against Erik's shoulder, flashing me a look.

"I've learned to just assume that you're always tracking me." Charles informed me drily, causing Erik to raise an eyebrow.

"Good." I remarked. "Because I am." I regarded Erik. "You need to relax more."

"I didn't ask." Erik responded, only slightly annoyed by my presumptuousness now that he'd grown used to me. "Why did you come find us?"

"Oh yeah." I said as though I hadn't been putting off telling them just to be irritating. "Aunt Raven wants you. She's beginning to freak out about Marie and Logan not coming back yet, and it's really annoying."

"How sympathetic of you." Erik observed caustically. "Why did she ask for me?"

"Don't know. Don't care." I replied. "I know, I'm just such a nurturer. -Which reminds me. Who's got the tyke? I've got something to show her." Charles narrowed his eyes at me.

"Will it scar her emotionally?"

"No."

"I believe that she's with Alex in the playroom." Charles explained. I nodded in acknowledgment and went back towards the mansion. Erik got up to go see what Raven wanted him for. Charles glanced up at him, toying with the silver handle of his cane.

"Would you like me to join you?" He inquired, not looking incredibly enthusiastic about the idea. Erik shook his head.

"I think I can manage." Erik replied. Charles sighed and nodded.

"I suppose I should go and see what exactly Francis is up to." He stated, dragging himself up off the bench. "Be careful. Raven can get a bit volatile when she's upset." Erik nodded. He could still remember when Sean had tried to drag her away from her brother's study after he'd first sealed himself away. It hadn't been pretty. None of the others had dared even to suggest separating them after that.

* * *

Cecily looked up when someone entered her compartment and took the seat opposite her. She could tell without looking up from her book that it wasn't the quiet, young university student who had been sitting with her before. He had seemed to exude shyness. He had also left the car only moments ago to get himself some lunch. She doubted he'd return soon.

"Cecily Kinkaid, I believe." A youthful, accented voice announced. She could feel the boy's eyes on her but she didn't look up. He didn't sound like much of a threat, but she didn't want to encourage him. He continued to watch her patiently while she tried not to let on just how quickly she'd started plotting possible escape routes.

"Okay… Was that comment aimed at me?" She answered, finally regarding the stranger. He smiled broadly at her. He looked to be about her age. His pearly-white teeth barely contrasted with his light gray skin. That wasn't what got her attention though, nor was it the morbidly blue tint to his lips. No, what really made an impression were his fiery, copper-red eyes.

"I've been sent to discuss a proposal with you." Arawn continued.

"You're really not my type." Cecily joked, trying not to seem as scared as she was. She realized that she was probably being a bit of a hypocrite. After all, she had recently developed a sudden tendency to change her density, and seemed to be composed entirely out of metal. This monochromatic-bloke simply happened to have red eyes, even if they were far too ancient for his face, but what can you do?

"Very cute, but I'm afraid that your situation is really rather serious." Arawn replied, his accent growing a tad more pronounced. He folded his gloved hands elegantly as he leaned back in his seat to observe her. "My employer has sent me after you because he's become intrigued by your gift."

"My gift?"

"Come now, don't play coy, Miss Kinkaid. You're composed entirely out of fluid metal." Arawn returned, watching her expectantly. Cecily did not disappoint. She stilled for a second, understandably surprised that he knew. Then she darted out into the hall to make a run for it, scooping up her bag as she went. He just chuckled, not bothering to chase after her. She skidded to a halt when she got to the end of the car to find a slender, Hispanic man in a tailored lavender suit blocking her way. She turned and ran back in the other direction. _Only a few more minutes before the next scheduled stop. I've just got to keep away from these guys until then._ She thought to herself. The petite, red-eyed teenager stepped out in front of her. His eyes had grown more scarlet. Cecily pounded on the doors of a nearby compartment, shouting for help as the two men closed in on her.

"I wouldn't count on it, Luv." Arawn told her in an almost apologetic tone. She chucked her bag at him. He caught it and slung it over his shoulder before grabbing her arm. "You're not gettin' away from us that easily I'm afraid." Cecily glared at him as the train began to slow to a stop.

"Don't patronize me." She snapped. Arawn smiled at her again. "Just so you know. My Uncle's a Marine, and he _will _find you."

"Ooh, I like this one." Arawn remarked lightly. Riptide smirked. "How long until the gas wears off?" Riptide checked his watch.

"We still have plenty of time." He reported. Arawn looked down at Cecily, then rolled his eyes.

"Plenty of time. That's bloody specific, isn't it? I can't imagine why your last boss failed." Arawn remarked sarcastically. "You must've been well-efficient." Riptide shot him a withering look as they began to haul their prisoner off the train. He wasn't sure why Arawn seemed to dislike him so much, but he was now certain that the feeling was mutual.

"Lensherr put a coin through his head. Our boss helped him do it." Riptide said defensively. Cecily shot him an incredulous look. _That's it kid. You're down the rabbit hole now._

"Yes please shout that to the general populace, won't you?" Arawn chastened as they reached the platform. He leaned closer to tell Cecily. "Don't try anything, Luv. I'd rather not do you any harm." In a hushed voice.

"I figured." Cecily responded miserably. She'd decided he probably had something fairly nasty up his sleeve. The guy was just a kid and this criminal was still taking grief from him. She suspected that meant the kid was pretty scary. "You gonna tell me who your employer is?"

"He's special, like us." Riptide volunteered as they neared the end of the terminal. Arawn looked unimpressed by his answer.

"They call him the Shadow King." Arawn clarified. Cecily almost tripped, partially due to the strange remark, mostly because of the two men she'd just spotted farther down the terminal. Luckily for her, she was fairly sure the redhead had spotted her. She tried to cover the revelation and play it off as nothing.

"What do _you_ call him?" She asked looking up at Arawn.

"Nice try, Luv." Arawn replied and her heart sank. A red and grey blur became a man standing behind her. He and Arawn both had guns pointed at each other.

"Oh, I wouldn't would you?" Arawn said. He was smirking. A woman screamed somewhere in the background. The human bystanders scattered, fleeing the guns.

"Are you alright, Cecily?" Peter asked, not breaking eye-contact with Arawn.

"I'm not hurt." Cecily replied, then her eyes widened when she saw what the other kidnapper was doing. "Look out!" She acted without thinking. Her arm elongated, becoming a silvery whip and wrapped around Riptide's wrist, yanking him off balance. She gasped in surprise and released him, staring aghast at her hand as it melted back into its original shape and the liquid metal regained the appearance of pale skin. Peter, unfazed, grabbed her arm and pulled her away from Arawn, shoving her into her Uncle's arms.

Riptide moved to counterattack as Peter sped towards him, faster than the human eye can track. Cecily let out a startled shriek at the sight of the man in the lavender suit being flung into a wall by the unperceivable blur. Peter spun his gun in his hand, watching the half-formed whirlwind sputter out, before turning and aiming his at Arawn's head as an afterthought.

"Who _are_ you people!?" Cecily exclaimed. Her Uncle put an arm around her, trying to comfort her. Both Arawn and Peter turned their heads to regard her for a moment before returning to the matter at hand.

"So you're the other speedster, then." Arawn observed casually. Peter shrugged. "We've been searching for you." Arawn added. Peter smiled, cockily.

"I know." He confirmed. "We'll be taking the girl with us."

Arawn raised an eyebrow at him as if to say 'Oh, you think so?'

"You may be powerful, Apocalypse, but the police will be swarming this place at any moment now. You wouldn't waste your energy with that sort of bother. I know you better than that. That reminds me, I'm not familiar with this you. What's your name this time?" Peter inquired. Arawn looked surprised, then he smiled, amused, as he made the connection.

"I've met your brother recently." He announced, his eyes were fading back towards copper already. "Quite a cheeky little bastard, he is." Peter narrowed his eyes at him, lowering his gun just a little. He could tell that Apocalypse wasn't going to kill him now. Much like me, his eyes were a barometer for his mood.

"How'd that go?" Peter inquired neutrally.

"It was interesting, to say the least. He got a punctured lung. I got murdered twice, etcetera, etcetera. I'll tell you one thing, your baby brother sure can take a lot of punishment." Arawn remarked. Peter's expression darkened. "Oh, here we go. I seem to've struck a nerve." Arawn noted, unconcerned.

"Agent Frank…" Captain Kinkaid cautioned.

"You go on ahead." Peter responded coolly, still staring down Apocalypse.

"Don't do anything stupid." Captain Kinkaid responded, before complying.

"Like what, kill me?" Arawn quipped. Peter glared at him.

"Is that a challenge?" Peter returned. Arawn shrugged at him and lowered his gun, apparently deciding the confrontation was over. Then he put his fingers to his lips and whistled. It was startling enough to draw the Kinkaids' attention back to him.

"Your bag, Luv." He teased, dropping it onto the floor and kicking it towards them. Cecily regarded him suspiciously. They could hear the police running towards them now.

"What did you do to it?"

Arawn smiled. There was something old and a tad feral shining in his coppery eyes.

"Oh, my dear girl… as if I would need a tracker to find you." He said. Peter snapped into action, shooting a split second too late. The space around Apocalypse seemed to warp, as though the air itself was rippling around him. There was an odd sort of low, vibrating sound and he was simply gone.

"Damn it!" Peter shouted, kicking a nearby rubbish bin. He eyed Riptide's unconscious form for a split second before jogging over to the Kinkaids. "Let's go. Let the police deal with him."

"Sir?" Captain Kinkaid questioned.

"Police involvement is the last thing we need right now. Come on."

* * *

Emma was lying back on her cot, pretending to be comfortable. It was well after lights out and she knew that she was meant to be asleep but she just couldn't seem to relax. This bed actually managed to be noticeably worse than the one in her previous cell. At least, this one was closer to the outside—not that she was supposed to be aware of that fact. She sighed restlessly and attempted to clear her mind.

_Just wait it out. That's all this is. You're just waiting for the next one… Is that giggling?_ Emma stopped to listen. She'd heard something, but she doubted that it could've been… Her eyes snapped open. _That was definitely a child giggling. What the hell?_

"Ring-around-the-rosie, Pocket full of posies, ashes, ashes, we all fall down." Sang a little girl's voice. Emma frowned and sat up, walking over to the heavily reinforced window of her prison to look out.

"Hello?" She questioned, feeling chagrined. Someone had to be screwing with her. She just didn't know how. The little girl giggled again and she heard the patter of little running feet. "Hello? Who's there?" Emma tried again. There was a thump behind her in the cell. Emma spun around to see a little girl with long, auburn hair had dropped her doll. "How?" Emma gasped, reaching out with her telepathy to try and detect the telepath who was projecting the odd illusion. There was no one.

"We all fall down." The little girl said plainly. Her image flickered and for a split second there was a grown woman in dark jeans and a black leather jacket facing her instead. Her pale face was streaked with tears and her hand was outstretched. It took Emma a moment to realize what she was doing. She was screaming 'Somebody help me!' but there was no sound, other than the little girl's sing-song rhyme. Emma stepped back, knocking into the wall behind her and the specter vanished. Emma's eyes opened and she sat bolt-upright in her bed, shivering. That had _not_ been a dream.


	13. All About the Girl

**Chapter 13: All About the Girl**

I woke up and began to pick myself up off the floor of the playroom, then stopped to frown in confusion. I woke up? That didn't seem right. I don't remember falling asleep.

"Alex?" I called, looking around for the others. "Jubilee?" There was only silence. The lighting had dimmed, giving everything a muted look, almost monochromatic. I stood up and went out into the hall in my search for signs of life. "Sean? …Oh, bloody hell." I couldn't sense Erik or Charles' presence. The link was obviously still there since my mind wasn't crippled at all by our strange separation, but I was alone in the mansion. "In this mansion." I noted. "I'm on the astral plane."

"Look out, Fluke!" I heard Wanda's voice call out of nowhere. I spun to look back down the hall, but of course, there wasn't anyone there.

"What was that?" I asked no one in particular. I narrowed my eyes as a thought occurred to me and I turned back towards the playroom. "Those drapes… They weren't shut before." I walked over to the wall of windows and reached for the drawstring…

"Fluke! Be careful!" I jumped at my sister's sudden exclamation.

"Stop it! You're not Wanda. She's not alive." I snapped, annoyed with myself more than anything. The illusion was an obvious distraction. I shouldn't let it unsettle me. I reached out to grab the string again and just as my hand closed around the leather handle, I heard an odd dripping sound coming from behind me.

"Hello." Greeted a little girl's voice. I turned to regard her with the proper incredulity, wondering what on earth any of our competitors could be gaining from this odd charade. The little girl was soaking wet. Her scarlet sundress was dripping water all over our nice, clean floor, to say nothing of the trail of mud being left by her doll.

"You are_ so_ lucky that Aunt Raven isn't present to witness this." I informed the supposed eight-year-old. It was obviously a projection, and a pretty good one at that. I hadn't yet penetrated it, but you know me. Just give me time.

"You want to play with me?" The little girl asked, smiling sweetly.

"No."

"Come and play with me."

"I'd much rather ignore you." I replied, returning my attention to the window. I felt a tiny hand on my arm. When I looked down at it, the projection faltered for a second to reveal a woman's hand underneath, holding my arm in a death grip. I scowled down at the projection, and inquired more forcefully. "Who are you?"

* * *

Charles stumbled in mid-step, grabbing the edge of a nearby end table to steady himself as a wave of disorientation hit him. He cried out at the shrill sensation that penetrated his mind, obliterating the shattering sound from the vase he'd knocked down in the process. He'd never felt anything like _that_ before. He gasped in air as the overwhelming feeling faded away… which was when he first realized what, or rather 'who' was now missing.

"Charles?" Raven questioned, sounding concerned as she came around the corner behind him. He didn't even register it. Instead he hurried off towards the playroom. "Wait!" Raven called, chasing after him.

"Francis!" Charles shouted, dropping his cane as he darted over to my motionless form on the playroom floor. "What happened?"  
"I don't- We were just talking!" Alex told him anxiously. "He said he wanted to show Jubilee some book. He seemed perfectly fine!"

Raven ran into the room with Erik not far behind.

"Oh my…" Raven muttered as she saw Charles rolling me onto my back from where I'd fallen face down on the floor. Erik regarded Alex with frightening intensity.

"He just handed the kid the book and fainted!" Alex exclaimed helplessly.

Charles rested a hand on my forehead, and a muscle in his jaw twitched.

"He didn't faint." He concluded tightly. "If he'd fainted, I would still be able to reach him."

"What?!" Erik demanded. The metal in the room around them began to vibrate. Jubilee, who was sitting on my other side, hugged the book to her chest and looked warily around at the shaking fixtures.

"I'm locked out." Charles answered shortly. "I don't know how, but I can't touch his mind. There's some kind of barrier…" He trailed off, noticing the book that Jubilee was still clinging to. "Jubilee?"

Her gaze snapped up to meet his.

"Could I see that book Francis gave you?" He inquired gently, trying to ignore the surreal feeling that was coming over him. Jubilee hesitated slightly, but then passed it over to him.

"Professor?" Alex questioned as Raven crouched down beside her brother to look over his shoulder.

"Grimm's Fairy Tales?" She read inquisitively.

"That's an interesting coincidence." Charles observed, puzzling it over for a moment. "We should go." He decided, standing up.

"Charles?" Raven queried.

"Later." Charles replied, watching Erik scoop me up off the floor to carry me back to my room.

* * *

Moira looked up at the sound of a knock at her door, then looked down at her sandwich. She was on medical leave and it was lunchtime. _I could just ignore them. If it was official they would have called me._ She thought to herself, watching the colorful autumn leaves flutter downwards past her kitchen window. There was another knock, more insistent this time. She took a bite of her sandwich. Then someone opened the door and strolled in.

"God damn it, Peter!" Moira cursed, putting down her sandwich. It was times like this that she missed her old partner. Two other sets of footsteps followed him in.

"Wait in there, would you? I'll only be a moment." She heard Peter tell her other uninvited guests. She sighed and glared at him as he joined her in her kitchen, eyeing her gun briefly, where she'd left it on the nearby countertop.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't shoot you right now." She said, though her tone lacked venom.

"You like me." Peter replied, plopping down into the seat opposite her and idly tracing one of the white tiles on the tabletop with his index finger. She continued to glare. "I know you do. You think I'm interesting." He explained. "Also, I currently outrank you, so it probably wouldn't be a good career move."

"Who is in my living room?" Moira inquired, deciding to give up this tack and figure out what the hell he was up to now. Also, he was absolutely correct. She thought that he was fun… most of the time.

"Captain Kinkaid -whom you've met- and his teenage niece, Cecily Kinkaid." Peter answered, taking a bright green apple out of the fruit bowl between them and giving her puppy-dog eyes.

"Just eat it. You never ask about anything else." She told him waving a hand dismissively.

"It's never bothered you before." He responded, taking a bite out of his apple. "You'll like Cecily. They need our help, obviously. I can't involve the others, not with Stryker around."

"Stryker. Have I missed something?"

"Yes. He's gearing up for a power-grab, and you know how he feels about mutants."

"She's a mutant… You want me to contact Charles for you." Moira observed. Peter smiled and nodded, taking another bite of apple.

"Why don't _you_?"

"I'm being watched too closely at the moment." Peter explained "I can only keep them at bay for so long. You'll have to handle the secrets for a while." Moira looked pointedly down at the sling holding her injured arm, then back up at her partner.

"Great. You _do_ know that I'm on medical leave right now, right?"

"Yes. Does that bother you?" Peter asked innocently, at least in appearance. "Really, it's perfect. You have plenty of time to handle this and you'll slip right under the Shadow King's radar. It isn't like you'll be going into combat. Just get the kid to the Professor. She'll be safe once she's with him."

"You still don't trust Erik Lensherr?" Moira inferred. Peter shrugged, avoiding eye contact, and absently adjusted his collar.

"We're not friends." He remarked, then got up. "We'll be in the living room. Don't be too long, I've got a half an hour before I pick up my tail again." He said as he left her to her sandwich.

* * *

Raven pulled the double doors to the dining room shut behind her, and turned to face Erik and Charles, her yellow eyes landing pointedly on her older brother's baby blues.

"Care to let me in on the big secret?"

Charles sighed and ran a hand through his hair, uncertain how to begin. Erik narrowed his eyes at her from his seat beside Charles at the end of the table, but it no longer seemed to hold the same level of intimidation for her now as it did for the others.

"It's obvious he already knows." Raven noted bitterly, nodding to Erik. Charles winced.

"I'm sorry." Charles finally responded. "It's complicated and I'm not certain how well I can explain."

Raven continued to regard him expectantly.

"I encountered someone on the astral plane while I was still recovering from my… loss of control." Charles explained. "At first, she hid herself by posing as one of my mind's subconscious projections, but I was able to follow her influence on our surroundings back to her."

"Do you think that she was the one that manipulated your mutation?" Raven queried, coming to sit in the chair to his right. Charles shook his head.

"Not purposely. She didn't appear to be in control. She said that she was lost… The details added to our surroundings would seem to indicate that she is from the future." Charles continued, picking up the copy of Grimm's Fairytales from the table. "This book was one of them, or rather a future version of it."

"So you _do_ think that whoever this other telepath is, she had something to do with this." Raven surmised. Erik stared accusingly at the book in Charles' hands almost as if he thought it might be the book's fault that his family members kept falling into comas.

"Yes and no." Charles admitted. Erik looked askance at him. "I _do_ think that this may somehow be connected to her. The strange sensation I felt before Francis vanished is similar to something he mentioned experiencing around the time that I first encountered her."

"That sounds like a confirmation." Erik noted. Charles set the book down in front of them.

"I am not, however, convinced that she is a telepath." Charles concluded.

"How is that even possible?" Raven asked incredulously.

"I have no idea." Charles admitted. "Perhaps someone else brought her there."


	14. The Mirage and the Giant

**Chapter 14: The Mirage and the Giant**

Peter was just stepping through the door of Moira's apartment when it hit him. It was the same sensation that he'd felt through the link before Kinkaid's arrival, and now it was back with a vengeance. There was an intense wave of disorientation, accompanied by a reverberating, shrill sensation that blocked out all sound. He hadn't realized that he was falling until he felt someone catch him. It was over in less than a minute, but that wasn't very comforting under the circumstances. He looked up at Moira's shocked face, finding that she'd knelt down in front of him, then nodded his thanks to Captain Kinkaid for stopping his fall.

"Peter? Peter." Moira prompted, grabbing his shoulders then his head and staring worriedly into his eyes.

"Mmmm." Peter murmured in reply, trying to reorder his thoughts.

"What happened? Are you alright? No, you're clearly not alright. What was that?" Moira asked rapidly. Peter narrowed his eyes at her, not appreciating her verbal diarrhea. _Wait. No, he can't be…_ Pietro gave up all pretence of paying attention, trying to project his thoughts toward me over our link.

"Peter!" Moira snapped upon noticing the way his eyes had glazed over. He ignored her, trying again. He had been doing this for years. It had become almost second nature to him to push his thoughts toward that impression of steaming Assam tea and cool metal that always lingered at the edge of his senses, carrying a faint scent of ozone. It wasn't there. Not faded, as distance tended to make it…

"Agent Frank?" Captain Kinkaid questioned as Cecily came up to watch them over his shoulder. Peter frowned and shushed him. He couldn't find any trace of me in his mind.

"He's gone." Pietro blurted suddenly. Moira frowned at him in confusion. "Something happened." He concluded unhelpfully.

"We saw." Cecily responded.

"Wh—No, not to me, to Francis."

"Who?" Captain Kinkaid asked looking to Moira.

"Xavier's kid." She clarified. Captain Kinkaid continued to stare at her. "It's a long story. How do you know?"

"Well, I think it would seem to be a bad sign that there was a telepath with me in my head and then there very suddenly wasn't." Peter replied in a tone that showed how incredibly obvious he felt this was. "He was cut off. He didn't leave willingly."

* * *

"So what do we do? We're dropping like flies! First you lose control, then Marie and Logan disappear, and now Francis…" Raven ranted nervously. "We can't keep going like this."

"Raven, all we know for certain is that Francis has been shielded from me." Charles said, trying to convince himself as much as her. " The others might have a good reason for waiting to return. I don't like it either but I don't think we should assume the worst."

"If the Shadow King were to attack us now—" Erik observed, not helping at all. _Why do that? He's got us on the run as it is._ Charles thought to himself miserably, before responding aloud.

"I am aware of the danger we are in. I have a plan." He assured them, a tad louder than necessary. He looked at Erik with a harassed expression but then just sighed, resting a comforting hand over Raven's.

There was a tapping at one of the dining room doors. Erik exchanged a look with the others, then turned and pulled it open with a wave of his hand. Jubilee came running in and jumped up into Charles' lap, burying her face in his chest. Darwin was trailing after her more slowly, looking chagrinned.

Erik looked expectantly up at the younger mutant.

"Sorry guys. She had another bad dream." At Darwin's use of the term 'bad dream' Jubilee let out a little indignant huff. "Sean and I tried to calm her down but she insisted that she needed to see the Professor instead."

Raven's brows lifted in surprise.

"Shh. It's alright. She just knows that monsters couldn't hide from me." Charles remarked, carefully returning her hug. Raven eyed them quizzically. "You're perfectly safe. It was just the wind." He continued to reassure the frightened child. Jubilee shook her head, sending her long, black pigtails cascading over her shoulders.

"Let's go have a look then, shall we?" Charles offered gently. "I promise I won't let anyone get you."

Jubilee considered the proposal carefully before nodding her assent and wrapping her arms around his neck so that he could carry her back to her room. Raven gave him a tired grin and passed him his cane. Even as stressed out as she still felt, she found the whole thing absolutely adorable. Erik got up and opened the door for Charles with a wave of his hand as he followed them out on his way to check on me, for what reason I could never fully understand. I mean as far as he was concerned I was in a coma, hardly interactive.

"Chess when you're finished?" Erik inquired quietly as he passed. Charles smiled and nodded, giving him a quick peck on the lips before he turned headed up the stairs towards Jubilee's room.

* * *

I squinted down at the childlike projection that was holding onto my arm. Then I gave the projection a withering look when the illusion smiled hopefully up at me. I'm no imbecile. I could see it was an imitation of the way my older sister must've looked in her youth; what that meant exactly was something I was yet to discern. I released my hold on the deep red curtains to punctuate my point as I confronted her… it.

"I know you aren't real. So, who are you and what do you want with me?!" I demanded, stepping forward with each word and backing the projection into the wall. The supposed 'little girl' pouted up at me for a few more seconds, looking like she might start crying. "Listen Love, you're really barking up the wrong tree with that tactic." I informed it.

"You're being mean to me!" The illusion replied.

"Spot on." I confirmed.

"She wants to go home, but she's not going anywhere."

I frowned. The projection looked calmly up at me. It even batted its bloody eyelashes at me! What the fuck.

"Who?" I asked. When the 'little girl' answered, there was an obvious coldness in its gaze.

"You're staying here with me." It announced. Its eyes darkened from the pale blue-gray until they were the color of blood. I narrowed my eyes at it, stepping back reflexively.

"No…"

It smirked and giggled.

"Welcome home!" The projection waved at me. I darted forward to grab it but it was too late.

"Fluke! No!" I heard Wanda shout, as the projection dropped the doll and disappeared. I stood there, staring down at Wanda's old doll in disbelief, before I managed to snap myself out of it and stormed over to the windows to yank open the drapes.

"What the _serious_ fuck!" I cursed incredulously. Outside I saw the dilapidated and polluted, war torn landscape of the future… or well, my past. I took another moment or two to observe this in silence before considering "How are you doing this?"

There was no reply of course. I ran a hand through my hair, looking around at the replica of the 1960's version of the playroom around me and then back out at the warzone of 2012 as I began to calculate my next move. I froze at the blood-chillingly familiar, low, mechanical grind that broke the silence.

The giant's shadow fell on the snow and rubble outside the window. Even on the astral plane the sudden realization was enough to make my heart skip a beat. For a second I just stared, barely breathing, then I darted away at top speed into the darkened hallways of the mansion.

* * *

Peter pushed through the doors of the holding facility not even pausing as he showed the security personnel his ID on his way to Frost's cell.

"Agent Frank?" The Sergeant questioned, looking a bit confused.

"Yes, that's me. I'm here to see prisoner six." Peter replied quickly.

"I thought you were on leave, Sir."

"Sooner rather than later if you don't mind, Sergeant Tyler." Peter prompted. Tyler blinked, and nodded.

"Yes, Sir." He said apologetically, looking a tad dazed and let Peter into the holding area.

Peter narrowed his eyes suspiciously at the other man for a fraction of a second before continuing to his destination.

"Agent Frank." Emma Frost greeted when he reached the reinforced glass window to her cell. "What's got _you_ so flustered, Sugar?"

"I expect you already know." Pietro returned coolly. Emma got up from her cot and stretched, giving him a teasing wink. He averted his gaze and fidgeted uncomfortably adding. "And don't call me 'Sugar'. It's too weird."

"Whatever you say, Handsome." She teased. He scowled at her.

"What've you done?"

Emma raised her delicate blond brows at him and looked meaningfully around at her heavily fortified prison.

"Don't try that, Emma. Telepathy isn't exactly common and the list of mutants with knowledge of my family is even shorter!" Pietro snapped accusingly. Emma's expression sobered.

"Someone hurt the kid?"

"So you _did_ know."

"From the moment that I met you."

"I thought as much."

"Listen, I didn't touch him, I swear."

"Trying to be clever?"

"Listen Sport, do really think that I would have helped you in here to confront me if I was trying to screw you over?" Frost pointed out, stepping forward to stand just on the other side of the glass, facing him with her arms crossed over her chest. Pietro stared her down for only a moment before nodding and backing down. She took a deep breath and continued. "Your brother's not the only one this guy's screwing with." Pietro's gaze snapped back to her face. "I saw something weird a few nights ago after lights out, some kind of astral mirage. I've never experienced anything quite like it. It was five kinds of creepy, whoever projected it wasn't even giving off a signature!"

"I thought that was impossible."

"So did I, but that's what happened."

"Tell me what you _do_ know, then." Pietro said leaning forward.

"Alright, I'll help as much as I can, but just so you know, you're running out of time. Stryker is on his way down." Emma warned. Pietro just nodded and watched her expectantly.

* * *

Charles finished shifting through the clothing in the old closet and looked back at Jubilee.

"See: no monsters there either. There's nothing to be afraid of."

Jubilee eyed the closet cautiously then nodded. Charles smiled warmly at her and shut the closet door.

"Alright. Back to bed, then. Don't worry." He assured her as he tucked her in again. Erik and I will be right down the hall if you need us. Erik stood silently in the doorway, watching Charles finish tucking the small girl back into her bed. Charles was just leaving when he caught a movement outside the window and turned back to look.

"Charles?" Erik asked. Charles looked back at him with a puzzled expression and crossed the room to peek out the window. He was sure what ever it was had been fairly large. He leaned closer. There didn't seem to be anything there, which made sense as they were on the second floor.

"Charles? What is it?" Erik whispered again, not wanting to wake Jubilee, who'd only just fallen back to sleep. There was a low metallic grind hovering at the edge of Charles' senses.

"Can't you hear that?" Charles inquired. Erik paused to listen, then shook his head, looking concerned. Charles caught another slow-moving shadow out of the corner of his eye and turned back to see the massive metal behemoth staring in at him with its glowing red visual sensors. He tensed briefly, but then relaxed and simply studied it. If it was really there, Erik would have reacted. He is a magnekinetic after all, and this giant was clearly not designed for a friendly purpose.

"What are you?" Charles thought aloud.

"What?"

"An astral projection… or a memory. Not from _this_ time." Charles decided. Erik came to stand beside him as Charles put a hand up to touch the glass. He jumped back startled when my image took the place of his reflection for a split second. Shouting without sound: 'Dad!' Then he was staring out a normal old bedroom window into the fading light of a frosty autumn evening. Erik caught his arm.

"What happened?"

Charles rested a hand on Erik's shoulder, trying to calm his racing heart.

"I'm not sure… I saw Francis."


	15. Impossible

**Chapter 15: Impossible**

Charles rushed out of the room as soon as he'd steadied himself enough to do so. Erik darted after him, easily catching up to him.

"You should slow down." Erik advised in a casual tone. Charles ignored him; his face had gone as pale and expressionless as that of a corpse. "Calm down, Schatz." Erik persisted, resting a hand on Charles' arm. He just shrugged it off without showing any other sign of awareness. Erik glanced over his shoulder as a nearby portrait began to shake within its frame, and that was just too much. He was not going through _that_ again. "Charles!" Erik snapped, stepping in front of the other man and snatching away his cane. Charles stumbled. Erik caught him around the waist, as carefully as though he were made of blown glass, and Charles finally blinked and looked up to meet Erik's eyes. "Calm your mind." Erik instructed, his worry beating violently against what was left of Charles' mental shielding.

"I…" Charles replied, looking dazed. Erik's gaze flitted to the credenza beside them as it, too, began to vibrate, then back to Charles' face. Erik swallowed, and shut his eyes, forcing down his panic. Bombarding Charles with it was not going to help things. The objects around them gradually returned to rest.

"I'm sorry." Charles muttered.

"Don't." Erik responded immediately, pulling him in for a kiss.

"I didn't mean to scare you." Charles mumbled into Erik's shoulder, suddenly feeling exhausted. "I just… I'm alright.- I experienced…" Charles drew in a deep breath shivering a bit at the memory before he could continue. "I'm not sure what it was that I experienced, but it wasn't good. I think Francis might be trapped there. For a split second, I almost felt like I'd be trapped as well."

Erik pulled Charles even closer in response to that admission. Internally cursing himself for how utterly useless he was at protecting us. Which was neither here nor there; neither of us really expected that of him, as far as I am aware.

* * *

Peter sat in his uncomfortable, metal chair in the interrogation room, waiting for Stryker to come in and hassle him. He knew the wanker was taking his sweet time, hoping to build the tension, but really all he was succeeding in doing was making Pietro incredibly bored.

Stryker didn't really have a move against him, other than some weak posturing. As far as he was concerned, Peter Frank was an irritating but completely legitimate, human CIA agent. Whether he was overstepping his bounds was debatable, but that decision would be up to his peers within the Agency, several of whom secretly found Stryker to be a bit of a dick. Peter on the other hand was well-liked by his superiors and was known for his well-reasoned if unconventional behavior.

Peter barely looked up from the desk when Stryker finally decided to join him.

"Agent Frank." Stryker acknowledged, opening a file on the table between them.

"Colonel Stryker." Peter returned blandly.

"You know, Son, you've got one hell of a file."

"Thank you."

"You have no birth certificate, no driver's license, no passport to your name, nor do you have any bank accounts dating back before September of 1959." Stryker insinuated. "In fact, looking at your file it begins to seem as if you simply sprang into existence about four years ago."

"So you've skipped through the file a bit." Peter concluded disinterestedly, not rising to the bait.

"Oh yes, your supposed Fugue Syndrome. Seems a bit convenient, don't you think?"

"Technically, I have yet to be accused of any crime." Peter noted drily, more annoyed than concerned.

"What were you doing unaccompanied and unsanctioned in high security holding?" Stryker pressed on aggressively. Peter scoffed and smiled at that.

"Perhaps you should be asking your own men that question, Colonel."

"Answer the question."

"I was talking. _Obviously_."

"You've been taken off active duty, Agent Frank." Stryker barked. "If you'll recall, I attended the meeting where that decision was announced."

"Bravo for you."

"So tell me what _exactly_ you were doing in this facility after you willfully slipped your assigned guard this afternoon."

"Ah, so that _was _your man, was it? Just can't get the staff." Peter quipped.

"Don't toy with me, Boy."

"Oh, don't act so self-righteous, Colonel. He wasn't there for my protection and we both know it. You had one of your men tailing me, for what reason I can only imagine. Perhaps you dislike my position on the 'Mutant Problem', or perhaps you feel that I'm in your way. Either way I don't particularly care." Peter told him coolly, leaning forward with his arms folded on the table top. "Don't try to pass this off as a security issue of _ours,_ because it isn't, nor do you have a valid reason to hold me. So, why don't we both stop playing around?"

"You really don't want to push me right now." Stryker growled.

"Is that so?" Peter returned evenly, his blue-grey eyes sparkling in a manner that hinted he very much did. There was a knock on the one-way mirror behind Stryker. "Oh, dear." Peter remarked lightly. Stryker's eye twitched. They both knew perfectly well that a very displeased Director Johnson was waiting on the other side of that glass. He was bound to give Stryker hell for this, before he proceeded to rip Peter a new one -once they were out of there, of course. Pietro could take it; he'd had worse.

* * *

"Hey." Raven greeted softly from the doorway to my room. Erik glanced up at her from where he'd been watching my unconscious form. Charles had fallen asleep in the chair next to him and was now slumped limply across his lap. I still maintain that I have stalker parents. "How are they doing?" Raven whispered.

"No change in Francis' condition that I can see." Erik responded, then looked meaningfully down at Charles' sleeping form. "He doesn't seem to be having a nightmare." He said, absently brushing a few strands of hair out of Charles' face.

"That's a relief." Raven admitted. Charles eyes snapped open, looking glazed.

"Charles?" Erik questioned, sounding understandably less than thrilled as he felt Charles body tense, then Raven jumped in surprise at the sound of a door slamming downstairs.

"What the—" She exclaimed.

Erik stood up, earning himself a grimace from Charles at being left behind as strode purposefully out of the room. Raven almost followed him, but Charles stopped her.

"Wait! I need your help getting down the stairs." He admitted tiredly.

"Erik, what?" Raven called after Erik instead.

"That was the outer door." Erik replied simply, jogging down the stairs. He'd run a sweep of the mansion just fifteen minutes ago using his mutation, and all of the others had been settled down with various activities inside. Hank hurried past him to the still somewhat damaged entryway when he reached the landing, carrying a first aid kit.

"What's happened?"

"Marie's back. Hurt her side." Hank called over his shoulder as he dropped down beside her to give her some injection. Erik guessed that it was probably an antibiotic. It didn't seem important. He winced when Marie came into view. Her left side was smeared with blood and Alex was holding an already saturated rag to a wound at her waist.

"It's alright. It ain't as bad as it looks." Marie assured him raspily.

"Here…" Hank passed Alex a clean pile of gauze to clear the blood away from her wound and she hissed at the contact.

"How bad is it?" Erik asked Hank, ignoring Marie's eye-roll.

"She's lost a lot of blood—"

"Please, I've had way worse'n this, believe me." Marie interjected, fidgeting when Alex pressed a fresh compress to her wound, and smacked his arm, stating: "Ow."

"Sorry." Alex mumbled. (Marie has never made an excellent patient.)

"You need to stay as still as possible." Hank reminded her calmly.

"Yeah." Marie acknowledged, barely sparing him a glance. "Listen, did the others make it back yet or not?"

Erik and the boys exchanged a look.

"I think that I can get this stitched up in my lab, but she's probably going to need a transfusion." Hank finished his previous answer.

"Not." Marie observed. "We got split up, shoulda known better, than do that." She slurred, dropping her head back against the cracked wall paneling with a 'thunk'. Alex grabbed her shoulder and flashed Hank a worried look.

"Oh no, don't worry. That's just the sedative I gave her." Hank remarked blandly. "It took longer than I'd expected to kick in."

"Seriously?"

"Yes. She'll be perfectly fine." Hank affirmed. The now half-conscious Marie let out a loud, girlish giggle at nothing in particular. Erik raised an eyebrow. "She seems to have a strong resistance to it." Hank observed, then shrugged. "Alex, could you grab the kit for me, please?" He continued, carefully gathering the loopy young woman in his arms. "We should get her up to the lab."

Raven came into view when they were halfway up the stairs.

"What happened?" She inquired as she helped Charles down the last of the stairs.

"I'm not sure yet." Erik admitted. "It seems that a fight broke out at some point, and Marie got separated from the others."

"Oh my— Is she okay?"

"She's sedated." Erik informed her noncommittally. Marie blew a raspberry. Raven only looked more worried.

_**She'll be perfectly alright.**_ Charles interjected telepathically from his seat on the bottom stair. Wow, he really was tired. _**I scanned her when she came in and she and Hank are both confident that he'll be able to mend her wound with little difficulty.**_

"What happened?" Raven instantly demanded, whirling round to face him. There was an uncomfortable pause. "Charles!"

_**Someone tried to stab her. He cut her on the third dodge but it wasn't deep.**_

"And the attacker?" Erik piped in interestedly. Another pause. Charles frowned slightly in disapproval.

_**Cain shoved his head through the wall.**_

Erik gave a shark-like grin. Charles closed his eyes, not wanting to argue about this.

"I think I may like your stepbrother." Erik remarked. Raven shrugged.

"He certainly has his moments."

_**It was a brick wall.**_ Charles grumbled, opening his eyes to see the others' looks of approval. _**Oh, forget it.**_

* * *

Peter and Director Johnson both slid into the backseat of the nondescript, black car and shut their doors nearly in unison. There were a few seconds of complete silence while the driver started the car and began to drive.

"Want to tell me what exactly you were thinking back there?"

"I needed some information." Peter answered truthfully. "I determined that Emma Frost was my best chance at getting the intel. that I needed."

"What intel? You're off the case, Agent." Johnson rebuked. "You're already in it deep enough as it is. Just do yourself a favor, Peter, and lay low for a while."

"I can't."

"The hell you can't."

"Then I won't."

Johnson rubbed his forehead and debated the merits of smoking a joint. Peter tended to have that effect on people after knowing him a while. A while longer and most people either learned to let it blow over or ended up trying to kill him.

"Any luck identifying the leak?" Peter asked, glancing out the window.

"Cute." Johnson replied, then let out a heavy sigh. "You going to tell me what you're working on?"

"Not presently."

"Should I be suspicious?"

Peter smiled.

"You should always be suspicious." They stopped outside Peter's old apartment. "There is a leak. I'd help you find it but you're right that it's too dangerous to put me in play at the moment."

"And there's another reason you're not telling me." Johnson observed.

"Why have you brought me here?" Peter said following his superior into the apartment building. Johnson waited until they were in the elevator to answer.

"Someone broke into the crime scene, another mutant."

"Do we have any leads on their identity?"

"None."

"So how are we sure it was a mutant?" Peter inquired following Johnson out into the hall. He studied the door but found no signs of forced entry. As soon as they'd entered, he searched the tiny apartment for clues.

"Nothing was stolen; no signs of forced entry. The intruder was seen entering and leaving the scene around midnight but neither of the agents nor the civilian present can describe him or her in detail.

"Hmmm." Peter hummed in acknowledgement as he passed the living room window. He stopped on the next step and went back to the middle window. "Wait." He leaned forward and breathed on the glass.

"You've found something?"

"Yes. No." Peter breathed over the glass again as the older agent walked up beside him. "Yes! That's impossible!" There was a handprint on the glass. Peter held his hand up over it without touching the pane. "Six feet tall. Of course, she is. Oh please let this be possible."

"She? What? Do you know who did this?" Johnson queried as Pietro paced away, then back, then away again, looking excited.  
"I either do or I don't."

"Make sense please, Peter."

"If I'm right I can't tell you." Pietro admitted, still smiling. "And if I'm wrong I haven't the faintest idea. I need to disappear for a while. No one can know. There is a leak and we're all in danger."

"Then why are you smiling?"

"Because things are about to get very interesting." Pietro replied strolling swiftly out of the room. Johnson caught his arm as they left the apartment.

"Peter, what do you know?"

"I think I may have discovered something very important. It could balance the scales. Just trust me on this; I know exactly what I am doing." Peter said earnestly, Johnson gave him a long look.

"You'd better be right about this one."

"You have no idea." Peter called back before vanishing into the stairwell.

* * *

Raven stirred restlessly on her side of the four poster bed. Marie, who had taken the other side of the massive thing to get her sort-of-Mom to stop fretting, let out an annoyed huff. Raven had taken the blankets again. Marie sleepily recovered them and began to fall back to sleep. Then she tensed, the little hairs on the back of her neck standing on end. There was someone else in the room. Her eyes snapped open to see me at about ten years old standing in front of her. _What the fuck?!_ Their eyes met and Not-Francis' eyes went from electric blue to blood red. Marie drew in air to scream for her mom to wake up, but the double darted forward and covered her mouth. She struggled against it, but it was too strong and it yanked her right out of bed. She fell onto the now oddly monochromatic Persian rug and pushed herself up off the floor to look for her attacker. It was gone. …So was Raven, and there was gloomy grey daylight peeking in through the curtains. Marie narrowed her eyes suspiciously and crossed over throwing the curtains open. Outside was the polluted wreckage and gloomy remnants of the Xavier Academy that we'd left behind in 2012. Marie stared out at it for a few seconds, at a loss, before drawing in a deep breath and bellowing:

"FRANCIS!"


	16. We're Not Alone

**Chapter 16: We're not alone**

Charles rolled over to curl up against the warm body beside him in the bed. He knew that he wouldn't be able to fall back to sleep again, not as anxious as he felt. Raven had been right, we were dropping like flies, and Charles couldn't help but feel responsible. He was the first to be affected after all. _If it is the same phenomenon, then why was I the only one who wasn't trapped?_ He fidgeted guiltily at the thought, suddenly unable to get comfortable. Erik let out a sleepy grumble and wrapped his arm around Charles in a simultaneously comforting and pinning hold. Charles stilled, relaxing in his grip.

"Did I wake you?" He asked quietly.

"No." Erik returned, only half awake.

"Was that meant to be sarcastic?" Charles inquired. Erik let out a sleepy sigh.

"Sleep…" He murmured, already beginning to follow his own advice. Charles went quiet, absently toying with the edge of the sheet. There was something he was missing. He knew that much. _I will know that little girl. That much was true._ He wasn't entirely sure he'd be able to explain that to the others, especially Erik, when the time came. There was a part of him that really didn't want to. _The girl was real, and Grimm's Fairytales… I saw her—I found her, and I was let go. Why was I let go?_

"Charles?" Erik intoned drowsily, causing Charles to jump.

"I thought you were asleep."

Erik _had_ actually been enjoying some nice, dreamless sleep for a change, but that was finished now. _One day._ The magnekinetic thought to himself drily. _One day, we will both manage to be relaxed at the same time._

"You were projecting." He said aloud, sounding more awake already.

"Oh, I um… I didn't realize…" Charles trailed off awkwardly. Erik waited, tracing the web of crisscrossing scars that covered most of Charles' shoulder. "How much?" Charles finally asked.

"Grimm's Fairytales -whatever that meant- and you're wondering why you aren't in a coma." Erik supplied solemnly.

"It doesn't make any sense." Charles explained.

"I'm not complaining." Erik returned. He hated the reminder of just how useless he was right now, even if he was thankful for the small mercy.

"The more I think about it, the more I begin to suspect that those things I saw on the astral plane were shown to me for a reason." Charles said, sitting up. Erik held his arm out after him for a second before letting it fall back onto the mattress. He drew in a deep breath before asking resignedly:

"What do you think the purpose was?"

"I don't know, but maybe I should." Charles half replied, half thought aloud.

"You said that we had to find her. Perhaps they're clues."

"No… Hasn't happened yet. The note was written in my handwriting, in the back…" Charles dismissed distractedly. Erik sat up to face him, his eyes boring into Charles'. Charles was drawn out of his thoughts to meet Erik's stern, expectant look. "I don't think that it was meant as a clue to her whereabouts." The telepath hedged.

"There was a note written in the cover, in your own handwriting, and you didn't think that was an important detail."

"Not particularly. We were in my nursery at the time. It seemed to fit the theme."

Erik gave him a look that indicated how unlikely he thought that was. Really, Charles can't lie, even by omission, it seems.

"Was there anything else?" Erik queried, leaving it alone for now.

"Yes." Charles said, hesitated for a beat, then continued. "There was a doll that seemed to have s—" He broke off, gasping as he was once again hit by the now familiar wave of disorientation, though it was not so intense as before.

"Charles!" Erik exclaimed when Charles fell back onto the mattress, grabbing his head. Finally he relaxed and let his hands fall away from his face, staring numbly up at the ceiling. "Charles, what happened? Are you alright?"

Charles took a moment to reply, still staring upwards. There was another void within the mansion now.

"She's gone." He reported tonelessly. Erik frowned.

"What?"

"It happened again. I can't feel her anymore, she's gone. Marie's gone."

* * *

I was running at top speed down the stairs from the servant's quarters, when I felt a familiar consciousness blossom into existence nearby. It was so startling and nonsensical an occurrence that I actually stopped.

"Marie?" I questioned the empty air. Then a massive, mechanical arm punched through the wall, winging my upper body and smacking me hard into the banister to my left. I vaguely registered Marie's voice somewhere in the distance as I tumbled the rest of the way down the stairs. I dazedly looked up to see the giant pull its limb back out of the hole it had just made. The Sentinel's thundering footsteps shook the ground under me as it came closer. I rolled onto my back and looked at the wall near my feet, coughing up plaster dust. Then I rolled aside and out of the way as the thing punched through it to grab me, scrambling through the door.

"Francis!" I heard Marie's voice calling again from somewhere on the other end of the long corridor where I'd just found myself. I drew in a deep breath and called back. Just so you know, I hate shouting but telepathic communication isn't really an option once you've left your body.

"YES! BE QUIET! WE'RE NOT ALONE!"

I looked around for something, anything to get the Sentinel off my tail, then narrowed my eyes at the matches lying seemingly forgotten on the cabinet to my right. I picked them up and looked at the vase of dried-out lavender set on the table beside the door. There was an old, faded tapestry hung on the wall next to it, much like a serving suggestion. The Sentinel was using thermal sensors to find me. I picked up the matches.

"Seriously?" I muttered. There was a message scrawled on the inside of the cover. It said 'Light Me.' The Sentinel shot a plasma-beam down through the window. I shrugged and did as instructed, tossing the lit matches at the dried flowers before making a run for it. I did startle a bit at the unexpected explosion behind me. I hadn't noticed the large jug marked cooking oil set not far from the tapestry, though I strongly doubt that cooking oil would do _that_. When I was almost to the library Marie darted toward me through the doorway.

"What the hell was that?!" She demanded in a stage whisper.

"Cooking oil?" I responded, out of breath. "I was being chased by a Sentinel, but I think someone might be helping me. …Why are you wearing pajamas?" Marie stared at me, not really following my train of thought. She seemed to come to a decision, hauling me back into the library, and shutting and locking the doors behind us. I smirked when I saw that she'd already drawn the curtains.

"You do realize the Sentinel doesn't actually see, yes?"

Marie turned to face me, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Where the hell are we?"

"Oh, this? We're on the astral plane." I looked her over critically. "…Somehow. Did you drain Dad or something?"

"What? No! I would never—Someone grabbed me!" Marie exclaimed. I continued to stare at her blankly just to fuck with her. "Stop it. I didn't. I'm here against my will!"

"Fine. Did you see who grabbed you?"

"You did." She said, gesturing limply towards me with one arm.

"It wasn't me."

"I'd guessed that." Marie replied flatly, then frowned. "Wait. How can a Sentinel be here?"

"Well, technically it's a projection of a Sentinel, but it can still hurt you, regardless." I amended, pointedly brushing plaster dust out of my hair.

"Yeah… So it's a projection of a Sentinel. In 1969." Marie deadpanned. I stared at her, not bothering with a facial expression.

"How do you project something that doesn't even exist yet?" She added. I brushed more plaster dust out of my hair, blowing out a puff of air before replying.

"Have you had a look outside?"

* * *

Charles, Erik and Raven sat in silence in Raven's bedroom, waiting for Hank's verdict.

"The Professor's right. She's exactly the same as Francis." Hank announced, straightening up from where he'd been leaning over Marie's comatose form. "No detectable damage, no new injuries… She just won't wake up."

Raven sniffed and quickly wiped away a tear, trying not to look like she was crying.

"I was right there!" She snapped. "Right next to her! Why didn't I … I didn't even notice anything!"

Charles looked solemnly down at Marie with a determined expression, stating:

"We'll get her back." With an edge of finality before getting up and leaving the room. Erik followed him out with a mute nod to Raven.

"Erik, I need you to help me with something." Charles announced when Erik caught up to him at the top of the stairs, not halting his progress in the slightest.

"The lifts are nearly finished." Erik remarked. Charles smiled softly at him and shook his head.

"Yes, thank you for that, Darling, but I have something else that I need you to help me access." He replied, adding. "I can handle these." When Erik couldn't help but reach out his arm to try and support Charles. He did however take Erik's hand when they reached the landing. "Here, this way. I need to show you something." He explained, leading Erik down the corridor to their right. When they reached the end, he gestured to the blank white wall and looked at Erik expectantly.

"It's a wall." Erik said, nonplussed.

"Yes. How does it feel?" Charles said patiently. Erik furrowed his brow, confused, but reached out with his ability to probe the wall none the less. Then his face lit with recognition.

"There's something on the other side." He observed, putting a hand up to the wall as he felt around inside with his magnetism. "Your nursery." He concluded, meeting Charles' eyes. Charles nodded.

"Do you think you can get in?"

Erik smiled at him and raised a hand, calling forth a number of small metal objects from the rooms nearby and forming them into a pair of billiard sized globes. He waited for Charles to step back behind him before he propelled the little wrecking balls forward sending them whirling round in tight loops, obliterating the barrier in an outward pattern. A few minutes later, when the opening was large enough for them to step through the metal flowed neatly down into twin piles of sharp, little chips on the floor. Charles smiled at him.

"Your control is improving." He noted proudly. "Thank you." He said, giving Erik a kiss before he stepped into the old abandoned nursery. As soon as he'd crossed the threshold, the smile slipped off his face. He made a beeline for the dust-covered, oak toy chest and hooked his cane on the shelf behind it. Erik stopped in the center of the room, taking note of the damaged paneling beside that same shelf. It looked like something had impacted it with quite a bit of force causing the cabinet above to collapse. Charles, on the other hand, was resolutely ignoring it, kneeling down by the toy chest and opening it as Erik took in the room.

"Why was this sealed off?" Erik queried, looking around. Charles picked up one of the old, wooden blocks and regarded it grimly.

"Because this is where he died."

Erik stopped and turned to stare at him. Charles just continued sorting through the toy chest without showing any sign that he was aware of Erik's gaze burning into the back of his head. Erik came over and knelt down next to Charles.

"Your brother." He said quietly, watching Charles fiddle randomly with the dusty old toys before casting them aside with an unreadable expression.

"Michael." Charles amended, still refusing to look up at him.

"What happened?" Erik asked in the same quiet tone, as if trying to coax a frightened animal.

"I killed him." Charles answered shortly. Erik's jaw clenched at the admission, momentarily shocked into silence. "Something's missing." Charles stated, having emptied the box. "I don't know what yet, but I will when I see it." He jumped up and crossed the room to start shuffling through the little bookshelf. Erik snapped out of his daze and followed after him.

"That's not what happened." Erik noted, as if simply stating a well-known fact. "Why did you bring me here?"

"I told you—"

"Charles…"

"Something's missing. There's something that I'm missing…"

"Charles, look at me." Erik ordered, grabbing Charles by the arms and forcing him to meet his eyes. "Why are we here?" Charles looked back at him, stubbornly silent for a few seconds before replying.

"There was something that I missed before, another inconsistency in the dream that I didn't notice. If I am going to figure this out, I need to find out what it is that I missed." He snapped impatiently. "I assure you I am perfectly sane." He responded to Erik's unspoken thought. "Now, if you could release me?"

Erik did so, though he still felt extremely uncomfortable with this. He stood and watched Charles for a long moment. This didn't feel right to him at all, but he also knew Charles well enough to see he probably wouldn't be able to talk him out of it.

"You don't have to stay here and help me." Charles told him quietly. The anger had gone from his voice to be replaced by uncertainty.

"Yes, I do." Erik replied before beginning to help him sort through the books. He might not be able to stop him but he damn well wasn't going to let Charles out of his sight.

* * *

Moira nearly jumped out of her skin when Peter fell into the road in front of her car. Cecily let out a little shriek as Moira slammed on the brakes, barely avoiding running him over.

"He fell out of a tree." Cecily noted in the shocked silence afterward. Moira shook off the confusion and opened her door just in time to hear Peter's call of:

"I'm okay!" He gave them a thumbs-up to add to his point. Cecily frowned quizzically at it from the passenger's seat as Moira walked over to pull him to his feet.

"Dare I ask?" Moira deadpanned. Peter scrunched his brow in his 'better not' face. Moira was about to say something scathing in reply when she noticed the blood drenching his collar.

"Your neck!" She exclaimed, grabbing his shoulder to get a look at the three, evenly-spaced puncture wounds on the right side of his neck.

"It's not as bad as it looks, only a minor disagreement. You know Wolverine." Peter dismissed. "Which reminds me: change of plans! I'm headed for the mansion as well."

"What? What about your tail?" Moira sputtered. Peter leaned down to look through the windscreen to see Cecily staring at his neck-wound. He smiled at her and gave her a little wave before replying.

"Not a problem anymore. Cain's handled him. He's an interesting man, but still ambiguously amoral." Peter told her conversationally. He wavered once he'd straightened up and Moira caught his arm to steady him, leading him over to the car and shoving him into the backseat. "Mmm, maybe a bit dizzy. Do you have anything to eat with you? I need to boost my blood sugar."

Moira slammed his door shut in response, getting back into the driver's side.

"Um… actually, I think I have a cookie in here somewhere." Cecily said, searching through her bag. "Here." She handed it back to him.

"Thank you, Cecily. You're a lifesaver." Peter told her gratefully as Moira started the car.

* * *

Erik and Charles looked up from the pile they were currently sorting through at Raven's soft knock on the broken wall by the opening.

"You missed breakfast." She told them with a note of concern in her voice. "We saved a tray for you…" She eyed the neat pile of dust-streaked blocks to her left as she entered. "Pancakes."

"Oh, thank you, Raven. I guess we must've lost track of time." Charles told her, only sparing her a moment's glance. Erik shook his head at her to indicate that they hadn't.

"So, what are you guys looking for?" Raven inquired, standing beside Erik as she watched Charles pick up a red rubber ball and toss it to himself thoughtfully.

"He'll know it when he sees it." Erik stated flatly. Raven raised an eyebrow at his obvious displeasure, then returned her attention to Charles.

"I do..." Charles trailed off, but the oddity of the statement was eclipsed when Raven noticed the clawing motion of his left hand.

"Your hand." She said, her scales flickering nervously. Charles' eyes had glazed over again.

Erik looked at the offending limb, then over at the blocks that were beginning to hover an inch or two off the faded, rust-colored carpet. Charles turned to look at the empty space next to the toy box.

"Who are you?" He asked. His eyelids were drooping. Erik lunged forward and grabbed him around the waist, causing him to drop the red ball as he hauled Charles towards the opening.

"Come on. Out!" He ordered sharply, dragging the dazed telepath out into the hallway with Raven following close on his heels, grabbing up Charles' cane as she hurried after them. A few seconds after they were out, Charles groaned and shook his head.

"Mnngh… What? What happened?"

"I think you almost got snatched?" Raven supplied shakily. "You were talking to someone who wasn't there."

"Oh… Yes. That."

"Was it the girl?" Erik asked, still holding onto Charles a bit too tightly.

"No… Not exactly…"

Erik narrowed his eyes at Charles but before he could ask his next question Charles perked up and announced.

"It appears we have visitors."

* * *

Elsewhere in the mansion, Alex answered the door to find Peter and a pale, towheaded teenager that he didn't recognize standing on the doorstep.

"Agent Frank?"

"Yes. Good morning to you too, Alex." Peter replied.

"Uh, yeah. Hi." Alex responded stuck somewhere between awkward and suspicious. "What do you want?"

"Rough night, was it?" Peter guessed, eying the surly teen. "This is Cecily."

Cecily smiled shyly and gave a little wave and Peter continued. "I believe that she is someone that Professor X would very much like to meet."

Alex looked him over, then looked at the harmless and clearly nervous teenage girl.

"Fine, come on in." He said letting Cecily past him into the Mansion.

"Thank you." Peter said, beginning to follow her.

"Wait." Alex put a hand to his chest once he'd crossed the threshold. Peter raised an eyebrow at him in silent question. "Logan's claws did that."

"He's a grumpy asshole." Peter returned by way of explanation. Alex considered that.

"Hank!?" He called loudly, causing Cecily to shoot Peter a questioning look. Hank strolled towards them from the direction of the living room.

"What?" He asked sounding annoyed. Then saw Peter and his neck wound. "Okay, come on I'll deal with it in my lab." He decided, beckoning Peter towards the stairs with one big furry hand. Cecily stared after them, feeling lost again.

"Hey, Cecily, right?" Alex said, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah?"

"Come on; he's in the lounge." Alex informed her and led the way without waiting for a reply.

* * *

When they entered, Charles was already smiling encouragingly at her from his seat on the lush velvet couch.

"Hello, Cecily." He greeted warmly. Erik smiled long-sufferingly at Charles from his seat beside him.

"You might want to give her a chance to adjust." Raven pointed out, not unkindly.

"Blue…" Cecily noted thoughtlessly, then caught herself. "Sorry. I just…" She turned to Charles. "You're the Professor right?" Charles nodded.

"Please call me Charles."

"And you're all different, too." She continued. "You're like psychic or something. That's how you knew my name, and you and that other guy are blue… That was rude."

Raven laughed.

"It's okay. I know this is probably kind of weird. We are all like you." She said, shifting into her blonde guise and back. "See? Mutants like you. Charles is a telepath actually, but you were close."

"So you can read my mind." Cecily concluded, looking surprisingly comfortable with that news.

"Well, actually, no." Charles admitted. They all stared at him. "I can barely sense your emotions, for some reason. Perhaps it's another aspect of your own mutation. Peter seems to believe so."

"Yeah, my mutation…" Cecily said, her mood darkening.

"Hey, you're safe here. We're all different." Alex assured her. "Can't do worse than me I generate plasma. I was like a walking time bomb before Charles found me."

"I'm not really sure how to explain it. I'm… it's weird."

"You're metal." Erik supplied helpfully. Cecily narrowed her eyes at him.

"Yeah. How did you…?"

"He's a magnet." Peter remarked from the doorway behind her. "Sorry to startle you, Dear." He looked to Erik and Charles. "What's with the wall?"


	17. The Other Side

**Chapter 17: The Other Side**

"So it's a condition that's begun to spread somehow." Peter thought aloud. Charles and Alex had left a couple of hours ago to help Cecily settle in. Raven had returned to her room shortly after, leaving Erik, Peter, and Darwin in the lounge.

"It could be an attack." Erik reminded him.

"Yes, it _could_. Trust you to dwell on that aspect." Peter remarked, expertly ignoring Erik's glare. "There's more to it than that."

Darwin looked up from the philosophy textbook he'd been attempting to read.

"How do you know?"

"A number of reasons." Peter replied unhelpfully. "There's a pattern to this that's been overlooked."

"Enlighten us." Darwin prompted.

"First, the Professor had the out of body experience, then Miss Frost experienced an inexplicable visitation—"

"You never mentioned that." Erik interrupted accusingly. Peter stopped to look at him with an unreadable expression before starting up again as though nothing had happened.

"Yes… Then Francis falls into a coma to be followed by Marie a couple of days later…" Peter went silent again, his eyes scanning sightlessly as he processed the information. "Psionic mutation? No, not Rogue, then. The nursery. X, Marie and Francis… There it is. The pattern: the out of body experiences. Those_ are _linked. Emma Frost is the odd one out."

"Care to explain?" Erik inquired irritably.

"What, because they're all in the same family?" Darwin said doubtfully. Erik shifted his attention to him just long enough for Darwin to once again retreat to the refuge of his textbook.

"If I'm right, I'll have to be very quick." Peter announced, jumping up out of his seat and hurrying out of the room.

"Where are you going?" Erik said getting up and following him. He still didn't trust the Agent. He felt it was already bad enough that Charles was letting him hang around the Mansion, but he certainly didn't approve of the way he was just letting him run around unsupervised. Peter paused for a second, concentrating.

"West wing, the room opposite Francis'." Peter said, obviously reciting a message from Charles.

* * *

Cecily and Charles looked up at the doorway when Peter and Erik arrived. Cecily had one arm outstretched, now a formation of fluid-metal, forming it into different shapes. When they arrived, Charles had just reached out a hand to touch the flowing mercury-esque substance. It flowed and curled around his fingers, never ceasing to move.

"Amazing." Peter complemented the girl with a genuine smile. She bowed her head bashfully pulled her arm away, her limb returning to a solid flesh-like state as she crossed her arms. Peter shrugged and turned his attention to Charles.

"It's just a theory, but what do you think?" He inquired. Cecily looked back and forth between the two, confused by the non-sequitur.

"Excuse me." Charles said politely to Cecily before ushering the others out into the hall and shutting the door behind them. "I would prefer it if you didn't flaunt our private conversations, Peter. If Francis and Marie's comas are due to a telepathic contagion as you said, it is possible that you could be putting yourself at risk by contacting me."

Peter shook his head dismissively.

"Hardly. If I'm right about the connection, I'm already exposed. It'll either be me or Mystique next no matter what I do." Peter disagreed. "More likely me."

"Why would you think that?" Erik piped in.

Peter and Charles locked eyes, appearing to have an unspoken argument. Erik tensed the longer this government flunky was staying here the more and more he hated it.

"Would you rather tell him or should I?" Peter finally said. Charles swallowed.

"Charles?" Erik questioned, looking intently at his clearly distressed friend. Charles nodded once, subtly retreating into himself and looked at the floor. Peter studied the smaller man's face before seeming to come to a decision.

"The girl from his astral episode is most probably my twin sister." He explained, causing Charles' gaze to snap back up to him in surprise. "We've both suspected it for a while now."

"Why didn't you say anything?" Erik demanded, totally missing the puzzled, questioning look that Charles was giving Peter.

"Because, it doesn't make sense, among other things." Peter replied smoothly. "I was thrown back in time by one of only two temporally capable mutants in existence, Francis and Marie used the same mutant's power to get here as well. However, Wanda couldn't have done so."

"How can you be certain of that?" Erik asked. Peter smirked.

"You don't know Wanda."

* * *

"It's a strange motif, don't ya think?" Marie noted quietly, still pacing back and forth in front of me while I sat and watched from my place on the loveseat.

"What's your point?"

"Someone's doin' this to us—"

"How insightful."

"Someone from our own time!" Marie continued in a harsh whisper. I looked up at her face.

"Tempus is dead."

"Are we sure about that?"

"You killed him to death." I deadpanned. Marie looked unamused. "Time-traveler or not, you shot his face off. That tends to be a deadly injury."

"Fine, I get it. Do you have to be so graphic?"

"Yes."

"Whatever. Come on, we need to move. The Sentinel will be comin' round to this side soon." Marie prompted nervously. I shot her a look. "What?" She whispered, unlocking the doors.

"You're just guessing." I told her. She looked at me in impatient question. "You can't possibly tell, no one can. Time isn't consistent here."

"So?" Marie asked, her whisper sounding a little rougher. She paused, and straightened. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"A thought has occurred to me that you would find disheartening." I admitted. Marie raised her eyebrows.

"Yes?"

"I was just wondering what will happen to you when your body gives out. I only know what happens to telepaths."

"Yeah. That's just…Nice." Marie acknowledged, pulling the door open. "Come on, Cuz."

I sighed and let her usher me out of the living room. We wandered silently through the hall until we got to the lounge. I gestured to the door questioningly. We hadn't hidden in there yet. Marie nodded and I opened the door but only got a foot inside before stopping short.

"And then _that_ happened." I remarked at what I'll admit might've been an inadvisable volume.

"Shh! What?" Marie asked, pushing the door open further so that she could look. "Oh… Um, wow. Who's that?" She asked, peering over my shoulder at the woman's corpse. She was decked out in the high fashion of her time, her blonde hair perfectly styled and her makeup carefully coordinated and tasteful. She had been beautiful in life, even though she never realized it. There was a bottle of expensive brandy lying on its side in a pool of its contents beside her. I took in a deep breath and strolled over to face the ghost.

"Anna-Marie Darkholme, meet our Grandmother: Sharon Xavier." I announced in a hushed tone before crouching down in front of her.

"Mom said that she was murdered." Marie murmured as she hesitantly followed me into the room.

"Oh, she was." I confirmed, picking up the abandoned bottle and sniffing it. "Mmm."

"Cuz?"

"Smells like baloney for some reason." I explained, studying the bottle thoughtfully. The corpse suddenly tensed up, drawing in a massive breath as her cloudy eyes opened. Marie screamed like a little girl and yanked me back away from the chair.

"Holyshit!Okaybequiet!" She uttered timidly. Sharon Xavier groaned and sat up.

"Why?" She groaned.

"Fascinating." I observed. Marie tugged on my arm.

"What the hell, Francis?" She demanded. I rolled my eyes.

"It's not really her now, is it." I pointed out. The projection of our zombie-grandmother reached out towards us and Marie pulled me a little closer.

"Why did you let him do it?" Not-grandma pleaded.

"We're leaving now." I decided. Marie seemed more than happy to comply. She slammed the door shut and locked it behind us before looking at me wide-eyed and demanding.

"What was that about?!"

* * *

After lunch Charles hastily slipped out of the dining room and headed back to the reopened nursery. He knew it was risky, but he also knew that he was close to an answer and in his opinion that was well worth it.

"Tell me one reason why I shouldn't stop you." Peter said, leaning against the side of the opening and causing Charles to jump in surprise.

"How did you get there so fast?" Charles breathed, recollecting himself. Peter gave him a look. "Yes, of course. S-stupid question."

"Something in here triggered the link." Peter prompted. Charles sighed and ran a hand through his hair.

"You could have told your Father the truth earlier…"

"It wasn't necessary." Peter responded with a shrug, covertly slipping something into his pocket.

"You were sparing my feelings." Charles noted unhappily. Peter looked past him at Erik and Sean coming towards them down the hall. Charles spared them a brief glance before turning back to Peter. "You didn't need to do that, Pietro." He continued. Pietro's gaze snapped to his, his expression was unreadable. "You shouldn't." Charles concluded, reaching out a hand towards him with an expectant look on his face. Pietro narrowed his eyes at him.

"Wait, 'Pietro'?" Sean echoed, confused. "What's going on?"

Charles just stared back at Pietro and waited. Erik was frowning at them both suspiciously. He'd heard Charles use that name before.

"I'm fairly sure this is the trigger." Pietro said, not moving an inch. A muscle in Erik's jaw twitched as he watched them.

"And we both know that _you're_ not really the intended target." Charles countered. Pietro swallowed, muttering.

"That's debatable." He was already beginning to feel a bit dazed. Both he and Charles were feeling the oncoming illusion.

"Charles?" Erik asked tensely, coming forward to grab his arm as Charles' eyelids fluttered. Pietro leaned heavily against the side of the opening, reaching his hand into his pocket.

"The catalyst is a clue." Peter stated. Erik glared at him.

"Don't." He warned.

"Erik, stop. Either way you're bound to regret this." Charles mumbled, staring pointedly at Pietro, who just shook his head again. "Pietro Maximoff, this is not the time to be stubborn!" Charles scolded.

"She took Fluke, she can take you!" Pietro shot back, ignoring Erik's openmouthed stare. Charles' expression softened.

"It's not your job to protect me." He stated. Pietro took in a deep breath and glanced over at the image of Marie that had appeared in the hall before him. He smirked somberly.

"You said that to me before." Pietro recalled.

"Pietro...!" Charles insisted.

"I won't make the same mistake again." Pietro said with finality and reached out towards the projection. Marie's double grabbed him and began to pull him out of his body. Charles lunged forward and knocked her away.

"Stop it both of you!" He shouted, now feeling legitimately ticked off. "Of all of the ways that you could take after your father…"

"You can't possibly realize the irony of that statement." Peitro observed. Charles shot him the Look, the one that usually got us kids to immediately behave.

"Oh, what are you going to do, ground me?" Pietro persevered, beginning to push himself up off the ground but Charles promptly pinned him down.

"We are going to have a long talk about this when this is all sorted." Charles said, turning to the projection who was flickering as she came towards them. "Wanda, I can help you but you have to trust me."

The projection hesitated, looking oddly torn.

"You're stronger than this." Charles continued. "You know the odds. You always do, now who should you take?"

"Charles!" Both Erik and Pietro protested in unison. The projection flickered again, then grimaced, grabbing at its head as someone seemed to be fighting her way out of its core. It let out a loud angry howl in a familiar male voice before peeling back and disintegrating.

"Wanda…" Pietro breathed, staring at his sister's ghost. She smiled sadly at Charles before reaching out a hand to him.

"We have to go." She told him simply. He nodded and grabbed her hand, then his eyes rolled back, and his unconscious body collapsed to the floor.

* * *

I looked up at the sound of my sister's voice.

"Fluke? Rogue?"

"Do you hear that?" I inquired. Marie frowned and shook her head.

"Oh, that's interesting." I heard running feet out in the hall and followed after them, just in time to see the tail of a red dress disappear around the corner.

"This way. Follow me!" Wanda's voice called playfully.

"Hey! Where're you going?" Marie whispered, chasing after me.

"Sh… Just follow." I replied chasing after the phantom.

"Over here!" Wanda's voice instructed from the library. I pushed through the doors to find:

"Dad!"

Charles smiled and pulled me into a tight hug.

* * *

**A/N:** Yay! I'm finally caught up to... um, myself? Anyway, woo-hoo! Reformatting is finished! So, that's a relief. I will post the next Newest chapter as soon as possible, I promise. Just working on the finishing touches now. Btw, please let me know if you noticed anything that might have gotten skrewed up in the reposting. I tried to double check it all myself, but as you know i have to do all this stuff on a time limit. Mistakes were bound to be made. Thanks for sticking with me on this guys!


	18. Red Rubber Ball

**Chapter 18: Red Rubber Ball**

"So, you think that Wanda's here." I summarized, staring despondently down at Charles, as he regarded me with surprising calm from his seat at the chess table.

"I know that this—" Charles began. I slumped against the back of my cousin's chair.

"Is ridiculous."

"If you'll just—"

"_You're_ ridiculous."

"Oh for-!"

"And unusually insulting." I reflected. Well, I wasn't strictly finished you see, but at that point Marie reached up and slapped a hand over my mouth. I squinted petulantly at her, not willing to undrape myself from the back of her chair just to speak. Never let it be said that I'm not lazy.

"Shut. Up." She hissed.

"Thank you, Rogue." Charles whispered uncomfortably. She gave him a curt nod. "Now, as I was attempting to explain, I do not believe that your sister is trapping us here of her own free will. I'm uncertain as to how, but Pietro and I have come to the conclusion that she is being used as some kind of vessel for another mutant's will. They are using her ability in combination with our family's telepathic bond to trap us."

"So what do we do?" Marie asked nervously.

"It's still the same plan as before: we find Wanda." Charles answered simply. "She appears to be fighting against it. If we can reach her I may be able to help her break free."

There was a brief silence while we all considered the rather depressing odds.

"Ew!" Marie exclaimed, pulling her hand away from my face. "Don't _lick my hand_."

"Er, yes. Tell me, Father Genius, approximately how long have we been under?" I asked in a neutral tone, as I straightened up. Charles swallowed.

"Nearly eighteen hours." He answered grimly. Marie looked back and forth between us, her eyes widening. "Marie's closer to ten." I narrowed my eyes. The data didn't add up.

"We're both past our limit." I noted. Charles looked away and swallowed again, a muscle in his jaw was twitching.

"Dad?"

"You stopped breathing a few hours ago. We have you on a respirator."

"You mean you have me on _the_ respirator. I've been to Hank's lab." I corrected, pacing over to the door and running a hand through my hair. "…Which means you're fucked." I observed, gesturing to Marie.

"Considerate." Marie remarked, characteristically undaunted by my detachment. I came to stand next to Charles.

"Tell me, do you at least have a backup plan?"

"Raven and Erik both wanted to avoid putting either of you in hospital for as long as possible." Charles explained, eyeing my expressionless face with concern. "It'll 'put you back on the grid'."

"That's not nearly as endearing as you think it is." I remarked at his obvious attempt to evoke Pietro. "They _are_ right, but I'll be heading to the hospital then."

"If Erik cooperates, yes." Charles agreed. _That_ was rather uncomforting.

"Vater's in charge." I realized, exchanging a look with Marie. "Damn! We really are screwed."

* * *

Erik was sitting with Jubilee at Charles' bedside watching Pietro pace back and forth near the foot of the bed. Raven was standing silent, and mostly unnoticed in the doorway, looking beyond freaked.

"You've been hiding the truth from me." Erik said bitterly.

"That's my prerogative." Peter countered, not halting his pacing at all.

"What truth?" Raven asked timidly. They both ignored her.

"You lied about who you are. You lied about everything." Erik stated in the same cool, level tone as before. Jubilee tried to keep her focus solely on the wooden puzzle-box I'd left in her room the day before.

"Not everything—Nor is that relevant at the present time!" Pietro returned. He pulled the red rubber ball out of his pocket and began bouncing it off the walls and ceiling to himself as he paced. He really _has_ gotten rather good at it. "He knew it was the familial bond, which would leave him just as vulnerable as the others. He must know he can't counter the attack without help, but he just wouldn't let me in on it."

"I wonder why." Erik remarked, his silver eyes following the ball.

"Yes, yes, I'm your son! Get over it!" Pietro snapped, bouncing the ball a little too hard so that it flew across the room nearly hitting Erik, and frightening Jubilee. "_He_ did." Pietro added, collecting himself.

"Do that again and I will take it away." Erik told him with finality, wondering if he'd been cursed at some point to have only incredibly annoying offspring.

"You're…" Raven began to ask.

"Doesn't matter." Pietro dismissed, tossing the ball to himself. "This was Fluke's."

Erik raised an eyebrow at him, not oblivious to Jubilee's sudden interest in the toy.

"This ball was the one thing Francis kept with him when he was brought into the Brotherhood." Pietro remembered, eying it closely. "X gave it to him on his fourteenth birthday, to help him cultivate his coordination."

"At fourteen?" Erik echoed, catching the ball that Pietro tossed him.

"You'd be surprised how much not being able to feel things can impact your development." Pietro responded easily.

"What about you?" Raven inquired, studying Pietro thoughtfully.

"Oh, Wanda and I were born naturally. Francis was the only known clone." Pietro informed them then winced at his unintentional rhyme. "He's the link, which explains why _you're_ fine. Oh, he'll _hate_ that."

Erik furrowed his brow at the strange remark, letting Jubilee take my ball from him. Pietro looked up at the others to see their confused expressions.

"He was always bitching—"

"Language." Erik interjected half-heartedly.

"Sorry, Child." Pietro told Jubilee, without sparing her a glance. "He was always _complaining_ about how you never removed 'your precious tinfoil hat'. It always blocked him out. He could still access your shared memory but he couldn't consciously touch your mind. His bond to you never had the chance to develop fully and now it's keeping whoever's doing this from following the link back to you."

"I really never took off Shaw's helmet?" Erik asked, feeling a pang in his chest at the thought. _Did I cut myself off so completely from my own family?_

"You had another one custom-made for you, actually, but yes. The Great Magneto tended to be a bit paranoid. Besides, it's difficult to deceive telepaths without it. I have an idea."

"Will we hate it?" Raven queried, moving Jubilee's forgotten puzzle-box to the safety of the bedside table.

"Probably." Pietro admitted. "I might be able to use Marie to access their dreamscape. Her mutation makes her the perfect conduit, aside from the fact that she may kill me in the process—"

"No." Erik immediately dismissed.

"But I'm fast and she likes me." Peter continued, unfazed. "I could make it."

"No." Erik repeated more fervently.

"You know there are really _so_ many reasons why I agree with him." Raven agreed.

"You have a better plan?" Peter challenged Erik.

"You mean one that doesn't involve going against Charles' sustained efforts to shield you despite your link, and therefore, vulnerability, and letting you get yourself killed in the process?" Raven countered. Pietro continued his staring contest with Erik.

"I'll do it." Erik decided.

"What? No!"

"I'm your father. I outrank you here."

"That's… Father or not, we're about the same age! The rule doesn't apply." Pietro objected.

"We have got to be doing wonders for this kid's sense of time." Raven noted sarcastically. Erik grabbed Pietro's forearm and led him out into the hall so as not to further disrupt the infant's development.

* * *

We were jogging down the hall past Alex's bedroom when Charles came to an abrupt halt in front of us, causing Marie to do a brief, mildly hilarious dance in order to avoid knocking into him.

"Problem?" I inquired softly, stopping beside him with much more grace.

"I thought I heard something." Charles whispered back.

"What?" I asked.

"Be quiet." Marie ordered, resting a hand on my arm. We all stopped to listen. There was dead silence around us, broken only by a dripping sound coming from somewhere nearby. I assumed it must be the bathroom faucet two doors down.

"I don't hear anything." I whispered after the silence began to stretch.

"Somethin's dripping." Marie offered doubtfully.

"Ooh, scary dripping! It must be the leak monster." I teased, eliciting a weary sigh from Charles.

"That wasn't it." He said shortly, starting forward again.

"What did it sound like?" Marie replied following after him.

"I'm not sure. It was quiet but it was sort of a scraping, dragging noise."

I ignored them, looking at the cracked-open door to Alex's room, having caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of my eye. I looked at the others, whose backs were turned to me. They didn't seem to have noticed anything. I turned back in time to see a dark shape flit past the opening. I pushed the door open and stepped through into… My holding cell from the time Tempus had recaptured me.

"Francis?" Marie asked coming over to the door. I turned around to see the others racing forward as it drifted shut behind me and promptly vanished.

"Bollocks." I cursed, turning back to cross the catwalk. Sinister was standing in the center in one of his expensive velvet suits. He smiled as our gazes met.

* * *

Marie tugged at the doorknob, but it was locked. So she pounded on the door helplessly, yelling a handful of angry curses at the uncooperative portal. Charles for once did not call her on it.

"It's sealed." He admitted, sliding down to sit on the floor. Marie kicked the door and stomped over to lean against the wall across from him, breathing heavily.

"Did you know that man?" Charles questioned into the tense silence.

"Mr. Sinister." She spat hatefully. "He's the guy that started the Vault Project. He created Francis and the other artificial mutants."

"I take it he's not a friend." Charles replied trying to keep things light.

"He's the mutant Devil." Marie confirmed, staring at the door. "He _can't_ be here."

* * *

"I still fail to see how this is a better plan. Marie may not wish to comply, considering your history." Pietro said, watching from the doorway as Erik took a seat at Marie's bedside, waiting for Hank to finish placing the nodes that would monitor his vitals.

"If our experience with Francis is anything to go by, we have less than an hour before Marie's vitals begin to plummet." Hank responded, though he was a little thrown by the mention of their 'history'. "If there's a way to avoid that without causing further damage, we might as well try it."

"I realize that, however I see no reason why Vater, here, should be the one for the task. I may be linked with the others but I've always been difficult to read even for the Professor." Pietro responded.

"We've already decided." Erik said.

"You've decided." Pietro corrected.

"That's the same thing." Erik concluded, looking pointedly at Hank. The furry blue mutant flipped the last switch and nodded at him.

"All set." He reported, ignoring Pietro's glare. "Good luck."

Without further prompting, Erik reached out and grasped Marie's bare hand between both of his and closed his eyes. He didn't even twitch when the eerie blue grey veins began to fan out from the point of contact, beginning to drain him.

* * *

Charles' gaze snapped up to Marie's face at the sound of her frightened gasp. She had gone unnaturally pale and he saw the telltale veins fanning out beneath her pallid skin.

"What the-!" She gasped, pulling a glove off to inspect the skin underneath. She stumbled to one side and Charles darted forward to catch her. "Wait!" Marie said flinching at her own volume before continuing in a harsh whisper. "Stay back! I feel… Erik? Oh, I get it…" Marie closed her eyes, swaying on her feet.

"Marie?" Charles asked. He could feel her signature fluxuating, but he could not discern what was going on. Then she collapsed. "Marie!" He bolted forward to catch her but stopped short when Erik beat him to it having literally appeared out of nowhere.

"Erik?"

"Charles."

"Is it really you?"

"Yes. Why are we whispering?"

"How?"

"Marie let me in." Erik answered, looking around with growing concern. "Where's Francis?"

"We got separated. Marie and I had just been discussing how we were going to find him." Charles explained as Erik gently draped Marie over his shoulder and stood up. "Also there's a Sentinel prowling around outside, it's this giant robot they use in the future to hunt and capture mutants so we have to be really quiet."

"A giant robot." Erik echoed sounding unimpressed.

"Essentially a living tank." Charles corrected.

"Made of metal."

"Well yes, but I wouldn't rely on my mutation to protect us if I were you. It may not work on this plane." Charles informed him. Erik reached out to try and locate any metal nearby, but sure enough, though he could still sense it, he seemed to be unable to move it. Charles just waited patiently, watching his face to gauge his reaction. They both jumped when a door down at the other end of the hall flew open.

"Did you do that?"

Erik shook his head. They both stared at the open doorway for a moment.

"It's most likely a trap." Charles observed starting towards it. "That's how we lost Francis." Erik followed after him and caught his arm just as he reached the doorway.

"Then I suggest we avoid it." He said softly. Marie shifted and groaned in his grip, beginning to wake up. Erik gently set her down beside the doorway, never taking his eyes off Charles.

"You're probably right." Charles said, turning away from the door. He froze when he heard the familiar voice from inside.

"Dad?!"

Erik and Charles exchanged a tense look. Marie's eyes fluttered open.

"Francis?"

"Don't let him take me! Dad! Where are you!" The voice called out again. Erik stood up.

"Sound's young." Marie mumbled.

"_Hilf mir! Wo bist du?! Er verändert mich! Papa!" _**(Help me! Where are you!? He's changing me! Papa!)**

"It's not real." Charles said shakily. There was another agonized scream from inside, and Erik took an involuntary step towards the door, but Marie leapt up and slammed it shut, blocking his way.

"Damn." A familiar, male voice said. "Almost got you there, didn't I?"

* * *

**A/N:** Finally! A brand new chapter! Sorry it took so long, guys, and thanks for sticking with me. Special thanks to Chades for her help and patience. Anyway, I will try to be more prompt with the next bit. Also, I'm wondering if now that the Volumes are separated, I should change V1's rating to T. As always, I'd love to hear what you think.


	19. Purgatory Hotline

**Chapter 19: Purgatory Hotline**

"You're dead." I observed impassively as I studied 'Mr. Sinister'.

"Hmm. Am I really?" The phantom purred. "I have to admit, I'd expected… _more_ from you, Thirteen." He smiled down at me in patronizing amusement. "You know that I can't die."

"Everything dies." I disagreed. "So what is this? Another trick?" I gestured towards him. "This is obviously another illusion." He raised his brows at me challengingly, but I ignored it and continued. "To what purpose?"

"You killed my messenger."

"So you took Wanda." I concluded, circling his projection.

"And what a fitting replacement she's turned out to be. She even managed to follow you across universes!" Sinister crowed, his grin widening. I raised an eyebrow at him. "You couldn't imagine the opportunities you kids have opened up for me. I don't even need Nine at all now."

"I tilted my head to the side, not rising to the taunt, and waved a hand through Sinister's middle. As I'd suspected, it went right through him with an odd rainbow flicker of light, not unlike a hologram. Sinister's representation frowned over his shoulder at me in annoyance before continuing.

"Your brother may prove to be a pain, but I expect he can be handled again easily enough. For a speedster and a spy he is so surprisingly easy to corner." He reminisced. "So very sentimental. He's got no chance without the other Avengers to back him up."

"I wouldn't be too certain of that if I were you, Dead man." I replied, knowing instantly that I probably shouldn't have.

"Oh, _you_!?" Sinister scoffed. "You do remember how well that worked out? Regardless, you've got no chance once my latest plan is in motion."

"Your plan." I prompted.

"I can't tell you." Sinister told me, sounding impatient.

"That's never stopped you before." I noted drily.

"No, really, I _can't_ tell you. You're in a new universe now. You'll be facing a whole new me!" He exclaimed, then reached out and cupped my cheek, instantly spurring an intense urge to shower. "Oh, Thirteen, you always were my crowning achievement, and now you've given me a new start. The lines are blurring. I'll be able to meet myself soon, and we'll top all of my previous endeavors. You've made it all possible!"

I stared up at him for a moment, feeling more surreal than before.

"I'm sorry, but I don't speak madman." I replied, then transitioned, throwing him back with enough force to crash right through the safety railing of the catwalk. I let myself fall straight through the ground. It never would've worked in reality, but this was my sister's reality. She would never let me down.

* * *

Marie screamed and leapt back as a figure unexpectedly plummeted through the living room's ceiling directly above her. Needless to say, I broke the coffee table when I landed.

"Francis?" Charles questioned, walking over to me. I coughed.

"Huh, so that's where that leads." I remarked and accepted the hand he held out to me, letting him pull me to my feet.

"You alright?" Marie asked. Charles was already looking me over.

"Fantastic." I confirmed. "Sinister's still a nut, if you were wondering, which you weren't."

"Who's Sinister." Erik queried, frowning.

"It seems that's the chosen name of the mad scientist who created our son." Charles supplied helpfully, pulling a few pieces of debris out of the back of my collar.

"Quite." I confirmed. "His appallingly accurate projection nearly monologued me to death about how thankful he is that we're back in his past, or something. He's also taken credit for Wanda's current dilemma, but that's beside the point really."

"But he didn't have Tempus anymore so…" Marie trailed off uncomfortably.

"Exactly." I returned. "It seems she was his impromptu replacement."

"You'd said you'd killed him by then." Marie said, seeming to grow more and more suspicious. Great. That was just what I needed. Charles crossed his arms over his chest, clearly displeased by the turn our conversation was taking, or perhaps just the idea of my murdering my own creator. It was hard to tell.

"I did, didn't I." I said, gesturing to Erik. "So, when did he get here?"

"Real smooth, Cuz." Marie drawled. "Were you lyin', or is there just somethin' you ain't tellin' us?"

"This is me we're talking about." I replied, walking over to face her. I shrugged. "So probably both."

"Francis?" Charles questioned.

"You can interrogate me later." I announced. I paused, looking curiously around the room. "Does anyone else feel like we're forgetting something?"

"Listen—" Marie began to scold, but went silent at the thud, thud, thud of giant footsteps coming closer. We all froze when a massive shadow blocked out the light that had been filtering in through the window behind me and Charles.

"Bollocks." I acknowledged, right before a bright red beam blew up the wall behind us, sending shattered glass and chunks of panelling flying everywhere.

* * *

"How long do we have?" Raven asked, staring at the monitor that sat beside Erik's and Marie's unconscious forms.

"Approximately 30-40 minutes." Hank calculated. "They'll make it out of there."

"You're awfully optimistic." Pietro returned coolly.

"I'm just hoping for the best." Hank admitted. Pietro looked less than impressed by the response.

"I see." He said tonelessly.

"There's nothing else that we can do." Raven shot back. "There's nothing wrong with having a little faith in our friends."

"In _your_ friends, and yes there is something that I can do. There are in fact a number of other things that we can do. All of them just happen entail defying Vater, which you seem astonishingly averse to."

"He wouldn't let them die!" Raven argued. Hank's ears pinned back and he tried with the expected lack of success to shrink away into the recliner and avoid notice.

"If you think that—" Pietro began, but a voice from the doorway cut him off.

"Um... not to ruin the warm family moment here, but is that thing supposed to be doing that?" Cecily asked, pointing at the rapidly beeping heart monitor. Hank jumped up and hurried over to check their vitals.

"Heart rates, adrenalin… Something's happening…" Hank muttered.

"An ingenious conclusion." Pietro stated sarcastically. Raven shot him a death glare. He stood up and continued speaking. "They seem to be in trouble. Is there anything that we 'can' do to help them?" Hank bit his lip and shook his head. "Marvelous." Pietro replied and pushed past Cecily out of the room. She looked around at the others before following him downstairs.

He was already putting the kettle on for tea when Cecily caught up to him in the kitchen.

Lucy batted his hand away when he reached for the tea cabinet (yes we have a tea cabinet; my Dad truly is that terminally obsessed) and returned to her preparation of the accompanying biscuits.

"Agent Frank?" Cecily called cautiously.

"Yes, Dear?" Pietro replied, attempting to steal a bit of cookie dough while Lucy didn't appear to be watching.

"I know this is a bad time, but I was wondering if I could talk to you for a moment."

"Ow!" Pietro pulled his hand away and Lucy looked wholly unrepentant about having slapped it. Instead, she looked meaningfully towards the door. Cecily tried not to smile.

"Tea will be ready for you shortly, Sir." Lucy informed Pietro sweetly. He narrowed his eyes at the older woman before turning back to join Cecily in the doorway.

"Come along, then. We'll talk in the dining room." He agreed.

* * *

As soon as the bombardment had stopped, Charles grabbed my arm and hauled me up off the floor. We could hear the mechanical whirring as the Sentinel repositioned itself, readying for the next attack. Marie threw the doors open and Charles dragged me out into the hall. I could hear Erik following close behind and cursing in multiple languages under his breath when the Sentinel began to try and smash its way in after us.

"You just _had_ to scream." I snapped.

"Fuck you!" Marie replied over her shoulder as she led the way through the darkened corridors. "You know, I'd almost suggest headin' back to the billiards room if not for your brilliant reunion there earlier today."

"Oh of all of the! You're blaming that on me!?" I exclaimed incredulously.

"She ain't comin' from my subconscious now, is she, Patchwork Boy?" Marie shot back in a rough sounding hiss. Erik faltered for a moment.

"Patchwork Boy?" He echoed. I scowled at my cousin.

"Unbel—You know, I'm not even sure which I find more insulting: the idea that you'd hold me responsible for that morbid abomination back there, or the obvious lack of effort involved in that insult!" I protested.

"Children, please…" Charles requested gently, flinching at another crash from somewhere behind us.

"I'll admit I wasn't tryin', but now that I think about it, the name is just _so_ you." Marie taunted. I flipped her off at that point. Charles glared, first at me, then at Erik. Erik let out a long suffering sigh as we turned the corner.

"Francis, don't flip off your cousin while we're fleeing giant robots." He recited dispassionately. I rolled my eyes.

"Neither one of you is taking this seriously enough." Charles complained quietly.

"She's being a pill." I defended in a similar tone. "Also, that by far has to be the greatest sentence I have ever heard you utter in my life." I told Erik before stopping abruptly. "Wait! Listen."

The others stopped and listened.

"It's quiet." Charles realized. Marie relaxed slightly, looking hopeful.

"Hey, maybe we—"

"Sh, sh! For shame, Principéssa!" I warned her hurriedly. "Are you trying to jinx it?"

"Sorry." She muttered there was another brief, awkward silence.

"So… Do I want to know what it was you found in the billiards room?" Charles hesitantly inquired, breaking the silence.

"Definitely not." Marie assured him in the same moment I said. "Zombie grandma."

"God damnit, Cuz!" Marie scolded, wincing at Charles' facial expression.

"He asked." I pointed out. "If I was as terrible as you like to imply, I could've simply led us down to the nursery to try and discover—"

"You are not to finish that sentence." Erik interrupted pointedly, still eying Charles with concern. Marie looked like she wanted to strangle me.

"Understood." I acquiesced. Dad did look a bit stressed the more I considered it, and based on past experience I couldn't really be 100% certain that Marie wouldn't follow through with the unspoken threat. I _had_ been pushing it.

Charles straightened up and cleared his throat, visibly pulling himself together.

"We still need to figure out a way to locate Wanda." He announced, pretending nothing had happened. "The geography around us is shifting. I doubt just wandering around in search of clues would work, even if we weren't also trying to avoid that Sentinel out there at the same time."

"I think she's been changing details in order to help us." I said, leaning back against the wall. "Whatever programming Sinister implanted in her mind seems to work on a delay. She's saved my neck at least twice now by giving me an out at the last minute."

"The cooking oil." Marie guessed. I nodded.

"So she's watching us." Charles said, seeming to confirm a theory he'd already held. "She's just hidden from us somehow."

"Probably because Sinister knew you could overpower him if you got the chance." I agreed. "That's why we keep getting split up. It keeps us distracted."

"I've never used my telepathy for anything like this." Charles said sounding taken aback.

"Yet." I amended. He looked disturbed by the news. "You were at war." I continued calmly, eying Erik and Marie for a fleeting second. "Needs must."

"I wouldn't know what to do…" Charles said, still in denial. He seemed to still be in that annoying stage where he feared his own potential power.

"Then we'll die." I challenged. I didn't want to put up with this shit. "I'd go on without you and handle this myself, but as you may have noticed, telepathic combat techniques were not an asset you ever wished to share."

"Francis, stop it." Marie chastened. "This isn't helping." She turned to Charles. "Listen, I know this looks bad right now, but we'll deal with it as it comes, okay? I'm not worried. You've gotten us out of way worse scrapes." I opened my mouth to remark on that.

"Don't even think about it." Erik warned and I remained silent. I pushed off of the wall and wandered further down the corridor while they continued to consider our options.

"You said she can hear us." Erik was saying. I looked up feeling a weight in my pants pocket that hadn't been there a moment ago.

"So why not just ask…" I realized aloud. A familiar tune rang through the air, causing Marie's eyebrows to shoot up towards her hairline.

_Pa tee, pateepee,—mahna mahna._

_Pa teepee, teep—mahna mahna._

"What is that?" Erik asked, bewildered. I smirked.

"Excuse me." I muttered, pulling my mobile phone out of my pocket and answering it.

"_So_ smug." Marie remarked in the background as I answered.

"Purgatory hotline." I quipped out of habit. Pietro and I had a longstanding competition never to answer one of Wanda's calls the same way twice.

"**I'm in the room that you don't want to enter."** Wanda responded matter-of-factly.

"Well that's… cryptic. Do you have any more helpful tips for me?" I responded patiently.

"**Stop antagonizing your cousin before she punches you."** Wanda advised with a smile in her voice. I eyed Marie, seeing her reach her hand out expectantly.

"Will do." I acknowledged and handed Marie the phone.

"Hey… Yeah… Um, alright… No, I don't really…" Marie was saying. Charles and I exchanged a glance.

"Curious." Charles observed. I tilted my head in a half nod. It really was weird to hear just the one side.

"Wait! Just one more—" Marie looked up at us and hung up, pocketing the phone.

"Anything useful?" Erik queried.

"I don't want to go there?" I offered.

"She told me that she was back at the start." Marie said. "Is there any place that you really don't want to go?"

"Yeah 'cause it's that easy." I replied sarcastically. Erik crossed his arms over his chest, seeming to think I was being willfully unhelpful. I threw my hands up in the air. "Other than a natural aversion to the Sentinel I can honestly say that I have no preference whatsoever."

"Back at the start?" Marie prompted. I rolled my eyes and began to wander away again. Just once I would love for Wanda to be a bit less mysterious. It clearly would've helped.

* * *

"So, what seems to be the problem?" Pietro asked sitting down at the table in my usual seat. Cecily paused by the seat opposite him to think before hesitantly sitting down in it.

"I know there's a lot going on right now." She began, fiddling with the corner of the black and gold placemat in front of her. "But you told my uncle that you were bringing me here to help me with… well." She gestured vaguely at herself.

"The others here can and will help you master your mutation." Pietro assured her patiently.

"That's not really the kind of help I wanted." Cecily admitted. Pietro's lips thinned.

"No. You want to be fixed." He observed distastefully. Cecily nodded.

"It sounds wrong when you say it like that."

"It is wrong. There's nothing to be fixed." Pietro corrected. "There's nothing wrong with being different."

Cecily looked away not looking at all convinced.

"That's easy for you to say." She muttered under her breath. Pietro let out an impatient sigh.

"Please. You think I'm special because I'm faster than you are."

"It's better than melting." Cecily pointed out.

"The abilities of other mutants have the comparative advantage of your not having to live with their consequences. I've simply already learned to live with mine." Pietro informed her, drumming his fingers on the tabletop. "Also, you don't melt, you change shape, or at least you will once you've learned how. It's actually quite extraordinarily useful, as is the added indestructibility that goes hand in hand with your metallic body."

"How can you be so sure?"

"Because, I've seen it before. Which reminds me, just a friendly warning: you should be very mindful of electrical currents." Pietro warned her offhandedly. "Unless you want to know what melting is really like." Cecily blinked at him owlishly, troubled by the mental image he'd just given her.

"What about the men who came after me?" She inquired rather randomly. Pietro raised an eyebrow. "I can't stop thinking about it. It's like, any minute that red-eyed boy might walk in to the room and haul me away."

"I'm not going to let that happen." Pietro assured her. "Moira and your uncle aren't going to, either."

"How are we supposed to stop him?"

"I have people looking into it, besides, once my brother is awake you'll have a living barrier against him as long as you're here." Pietro noted with a smirk. Cecily raised her brows surprised.

"What is that supposed to mean?"

"Right now, the only reason Apocalypse hasn't popped up around here is because of the combined presence of Professor X and Rogue in such close quarters." Pietro explained, with a hint of pride in his voice. "The adaptive and reflexive nature of Rogue's mutation makes her a unique threat to him, while X's precludes the chance of a surprise attack."

"And your brother?"

"Let's just say an angry Onslaught blows both threats out of the water." Pietro concluded.

* * *

"You don't have any preference now, but what about in your childhood?" Erik broke in suddenly.

"Eh?" I replied eloquently. I'd only been half listening at that point.

"You said that some of your memory centers were disrupted by Charles' shields. Is that still the case?" Erik clarified. I nodded. Marie nodded also, seeming to catch on.

"So, any childhood fears gone missin'?" She prompted. I gave her a withering look.

"Well I wouldn't know now, would I?" I snapped.

"You never went anywhere on the first floor alone." Marie recalled. I glared at her. That had made me sound like a total wuss.

"That narrows it down."

"Actually it does." Charles said stopping suddenly. "Until now I've been considering three alternate locations. The Shadow King's first attack occurred in my dad's old study on the second floor. The second was the billiard room… which just leaves." And instead of finishing his sentence, Charles shot off down the hall.

"Hey wait!" Marie called as loudly as she dared and we chased after him.

"Where are we going now?" I asked as we turned another corner, looking over my shoulder as I thought I heard something drop. I shrugged it off when I realized I had nothing to drop.

"The old nursery." Erik answered. He skidded to a halt as the blank white wall that blocked it came into view. Charles turned back to look askance at him.

"What is it?" I asked, trying to catch my breath.

"Where's Marie?" Erik said and headed back round the corner to look for her. The replica of my old mobile was lying alone in the middle of the floor.

* * *

**A/N:** Yeah, I know this is late, but hey, it's also long! So hopefully you'll see that as a good thing and forgive me? I am doing my best to keep up I promise. I've been having blood sugar issues which is problematic. I think I've managed to make this work anyway. Thanks for reading! Please let me know what you think? Or not. Hopefully someone will... Sorry if I seem a bit strange right now, but you know... Blood sugar.


	20. Crazy Son of a Bitch

**Chapter 20: Crazy Son of a Bitch**

"We need to get through this wall." I said, looking meaningfully up at Erik.

"Marie-" Erik began.

"Is gone." I cut in, business-like. We just couldn't afford to waste any more time. Erik's gaze snapped to Charles for confirmation and he nodded stiffly, averting his gaze. "Now. We need to focus on the task at hand." I continued, not missing that muscle beginning to twitch in Vater's jaw. He would lose it at any second, I knew, but there wasn't much I could do so I ignored it. "Can you get us in there, or should I try for an alternative?"

Erik turned on me, ready to spit some no doubt vicious accusation at me, but another unexpected male voice beat him to it.

"And there you are, Thirteen!" Sinister cooed from the other end of the hall, immediately drawing our attention. "The real you: cold, pragmatic, unsentimental, _superior_. You aren't going to let them hold you back?"

Charles instinctively reached out and grabbed my arm and pulled me a little closer while Erik turned to stare down this new threat.

"Mr. Sinister, I presume." He acknowledged in that dangerously pleasant tone reserved for only the very special foes. No one wants to hear that voice directed at them, if they want to live. Apparently, this one hadn't gotten the memo. He barely glanced at Erik before his crimson gaze landed on me.

"Are you going somewhere with this?" I prompted, because why not?

"I'm offering you an alternative." Sinister informed me conversationally. I raised an eyebrow at him, remaining otherwise blank. I'd decided to see where this went. This version seemed more lucid than the madman I was accustomed too. "An alternative to this ill-advised escape attempt." He continued.

"That doesn't sound promising." Charles noted. I noticed Erik mentally categorizing all the ways that he could slay the Idiot out of the corner of my eye and almost smiled, before reverting to my perfectly blank expression once more.

"Not for the two of you." Sinister replied with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"You're not taking our son." Erik responded in the same deadly tone as before. Sinister's smile sharpened.

"Hmm." He raised his brows at me in amusement. "You deserve better."

"Familiar." I challenged. Charles tightened his grip, noticing the slight shift in my consciousness through our contact. Interesting.

"The Shadow King is merely a short-term ally." Sinister hinted, studying my face. To Charles' obvious horror, I dropped my emotionless guise to grin broadly up at our captor.

"A new partner?"

* * *

Pietro was just heading back upstairs to Raven's room when he heard the commotion up ahead. He faltered for a moment, almost causing Sean and Jubilee to knock into him. Marie had flat-lined.

"Don't follow me." He stated, then blurred up the rest of the stairs and out of sight, leaving a broken teacup in his wake.

"Holy sh—shucks!" Sean corrected in mid-swear. Jubilee regarded him suspiciously. "I, uh…" He cleared his throat uncomfortably. "I didn't know he could do that."

* * *

Pietro appeared in the bedroom doorway to see Hank standing over a lifeless Marie.

"You have to do something!" Raven exclaimed.

"Move." Pietro ordered, taking Hank's place beside Marie.

"I've already tried an injection of adrenaline with no success." Hank reported, more than willing to defer to an authority, as Pietro began CPR. Pietro nodded once to show his acknowledgment, not even hesitating to risk mouth to mouth. It did cause the others to flinch in apprehension though. No results. He continued unfazed.

"I should—" Hank began to back away.

"No ambulance." Pietro cut him off without pausing.

"But…" Raven began.

"No point." Pietro stated. "Come on Rogue!"

He leaned down one last time. Raven closed her eyes, beginning to cry. It wasn't working.

"Peter…" Hank mumbled regretfully. Then it happened as Pietro drew back for the final time, he stalled. There were tiny, blue-grey veins beginning to spread over his hands from where they contacted the skin of Marie's face. She gasped in a huge breath as Pietro smiled, beginning to cough.

"Marie?" He choked out. Her eyes opened wide and she hastily pushed him away.

"Pete!" She exclaimed, barely audibly, spurring her own coughing fit.

"Yep." He gasped out, giving her a sloppy mock salute from where she'd dropped him on the floor beside the bed. Raven ran forward and grabbed her in a hug while Hank knelt down to check on Pietro.

"Crazy son of a bitch!" Marie gasped weakly returning her sort-of-mother's hug as well as she could manage. They both narrowed their eyes as they heard a grunt from the floor that sounded suspiciously like, "Know you love it."

* * *

"A new partner?" I considered aloud, pulling out of Charles' grip. Erik's head snapped round to stare at me with a speed that'd give a lesser man whiplash.

"An equal." Sinister corrected, watching me stroll towards him with an almost indecent expression on his face. I'd always known he was a perv.

"Francis?" Erik questioned as I pushed past him. I ignored him.

"Well…" I said, looking Mr. Sinister over appraisingly. I stepped closer to him, nearly nose to nose, then let my face go blank again. "Don't be so thick!" I snapped, grabbing his head in both hands and forcing my way into his mind.

"Francis!" Charles shouted as the room around us flickered. He rushed forward, but with a flash of blue and red light, we both dropped out of reach before he could grab me.

"What does he think he's doing?!" Erik demanded.

"Telepathic combat." Charles stated flatly, still staring down at the scorched patch of floor that Sinister and I had just vanished into. He straightened up, running a hand through his hair as he turned back to the wall. "This needs to come down. Now."

The hall flashed red.

_You have no chance against me, Thirteen._ Sinister's voice echoed, causing Erik to look up.

_I know._ I replied sharply. Erik joined Charles by the barrier. He reached up a hand and tried to break through with his magnekinesis, but just as before, it was being dampened and was therefore, useless.

"I can't." Erik admitted, frustrated. Charles pressed both his hands to the wall experimentally and concentrated.

"Maybe I can."

* * *

I flinched, in as much as a disembodied being flinches, as another series of memories flashed forcibly through my mind's eye.

-Marie laughing at Bobby's joke- Wanda and me skipping stones together in the garden after the funeral- Nightcrawler pulling me from my prison as I blacked out-Dad's gravestone, a shadow that wasn't mine falling over it as a familiar foe walked up behind me—

_**Stop it!**_ I growled as I caught myself and tugged back, drawing memories from my attacker at random.

-Apocalypse eying him with mild disapproval as he accepted the handshake- A woman in Victorian dress singing under a sunlit tree—

Sinister growled into my mind and I was yanked under the flood once again.

-Erik growling angrily at me as he pinned me back against the wall with his magnekinesis- Stark grabbing me and holding me back as we watched Tempus throw Pietro away into oblivion, flying us away despite my screams- The smell of cigar smoke

"Listen Brat, we can help you!" Logan snapped. "Just try sticking around for a change!"- Charles slumped against the wall of the jet, covered in blood—

_**No.**_

_**You are powerful, but unfocused. You should have accepted my—**_

I cut Sinister off with a more pointed attack.

-Cain lying strapped down to a gurney, his eyes returning to their normal color as his mind surfaced from the illusion. The straps holding his arm snapped and Sinister's neck was crushed in his strong grip- The same Victorian woman, her pretty face twisted in disgust as she shoved him away and turned her back on him- Wanda flipping a coin up into the air as they captured her, triggering the chain reaction that crushed Sinister's facial bones and gave Apocalypse great amusement- A young boy's corpse. His son's, lying limply in his grip—

_**How's that for focused?**_ I inquired evenly, giving him a brief pause. His mind pushed against mine, trying to take advantage of the gap. Then he was on fire.

_**Ha! I didn't know I could do that!**_ Yes, I know. I'm a bad person. He screamed a lot, which was sort of unpleasant. It made my thoughts… vibrate.

He lashed out at me, desperately throwing whatever nasty, dark memory he could get his hands on at me. It finally built up enough that I began to gasp and lose cohesion, just before I was lost to the void, a bright white light flashed through my consciousness and shoved Mr. Sinister out.

_**Dad?**_

_**It's time to wake up now.**_

* * *

I opened my eyes with the sounds of a rapidly beeping heart monitor echoing through my head. I was perfectly calm despite the frantic shuffling of the others around me. I was crying blood, which had frightened my caretakers. I wasn't paying them any mind, more interested in the second set of visuals currently superimposed over my vision.

In a dimly lit, concrete room somewhere nearly out of my telepathic range, Wanda woke with a start and reached up, scrabbling shakily to pull the breathing tube out of her mouth. An olive skinned, pearly-eyed woman wearing a surgical mask rushed towards her but a slender grey hand came into Wanda's line of vision, signaling the stranger to back off.

"No, no…" Arawn said evenly. Then he leaned into view, gently grasping Wanda's wrists. "Careful... There we are." He gripped the breathing tube. "I'll need you to give us a big breath out on three, understood? Good girl. One, two…" On three he drew out the tube and Wanda began to sputter and cough. "There. That's much better, isn't it?" He remarked soothingly before turning his attention to the unknown mutant. "You're meant to report this, yes?" He prompted. She startled out of her trance and straightened her posture. "Well, go on then." He added and she rushed away.

"Bye, Fluke." Wanda prompted roughly, causing Apocalypse to shoot her a look, and I obediently receded. As I've mentioned before, it's always best to trust her judgment.

* * *

**A/N:** I know, it's criminally short. The next update will be longer, I promise. Thanks for reading this guys. Special thanks to my anonymous reviewer for the support. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. Feedback helps.


	21. Complications

**Chapter 21:Complications**

It had been nearly a week since we'd all escaped from Sinister's little trap, and it felt like half the mansion was just waiting for the other shoe to drop. Frankly, it wasn't a psychological climate that was all that conducive to recovery, but why complain when it'll only encourage more harassment? By which I mean _comforting_. People are so strange.

I looked up from the book I'd been half-heartedly perusing at the sound of a knock at my open bedroom door.

"Pietro." I acknowledged, closing the journal and setting it aside.

"Francis." He replied in a slightly teasing tone.

"You _knocked_." I observed, raising my eyebrows, and wondering who'd managed that. He shrugged, playing nonchalant, then frowned when he saw what I'd been reading. "Does your Dad know that you have that?"

"Of course not." I replied. "Nor will you tell him."

"Hmm. We'll see." He took a seat next to my bed. "So… How're we feeling?"

"We don't feel." I answered bluntly. He smiled.

"You know what I meant."

"I should be up and about in no time. That's according to Hank- Who doesn't really have a clue." I informed him with a sigh. "I never thought I'd actually miss your old job."

Pietro shrugged. "We had good coverage."

"That and they were used to treating freaks." I added. He narrowed his eyes at me in disapproval, and I continued. "Treating godlike aliens and psuedo-cyborgs on a regular basis made treating a lab-made mutant like me a cake walk."

"Who told you that?" Pietro asked flatly, then grumbled at the look I shot him. "_Tony_."

"Got it in one." I confirmed, enjoying his discomfort. "How fares the search for dear sister?"

"Can't you see for yourself? Marie tells me you've been making great strides with your telepathy." Pietro asked. I did a so-so hand gesture and he sighed. "It's about the same for Vater's search. I offered to use my Agency resources to assist him but, well, you know Vater. Can you pick anything up?"

I shook my head. "She kicked me out of her head the moment that she recovered. Arawn—Apocalypse was there with her, helped her remove the breathing tube, and there was some milky-eyed mutant nurse that seemed to be a subordinate. That's all I really know about her whereabouts."

Pietro leaned back in his seat, considering the information.

"Are you sure that's all?"

"Fairly certain, yes." I confirmed as Sean and Jubilee crept into the room, trying not to be disruptive and failing. Pietro spared them a passive glance, watching Jubilee hunker down with a couple of slightly faded, antique dolls near the foot of the bed before returning his attention to me.

"What did the room look like?"

"It was a basement, and no, I don't know what color the clay was or anything like that. It was all either painted over or covered." I told him, annoyed. "Perhaps, being a telepath allowed the Shadow King to realize the possibility of another of us peeking in through the eyes of one his hostages.

"No need to get tetchy, Fluke. It was worth asking." Pietro remarked mildly, producing a familiar red rubber ball from… somewhere. Show-off. "Here. Thought, you might like to have this back." He said, holding it up as if to toss it to me. I reached for it. "Here." He bounced it off the edge of the bedside table, keeping it just out of reach. "Ooops. Let's try again." Bounce. "Come on." Bounce.

Jubilee giggled at his antics. I glared at him.

"Pietro!"

"You're right. It's not funny anymore. I'll stop." He agreed. "Here." And bounced it away again.

"Stop it!" I did_ not_ whine. Pietro's an ass for implying so, and Sean's a _follower_.

"Hey. Come on." Sean said, trying to play the peacemaker.

"Okay, okay." Pietro agreed… and bounced it off my bloody hand! Sean laughed.

"Heh, heh… Now that _was_ kinda funny." He admitted. I crossed my arms over my chest. Pietro sighed and tossed the ball so that it landed perched on my folded arms.

"Oh, don't pout, Bambino. I'm sorry." He apologized. I squinted critically at him then glanced over at Jubilee.

"He is not a role model." I stated with finality. She didn't seem to care, already having shifted her attention back to the dolls that she was playing with.

* * *

Charles paused in his leisurely stroll down the garden path to lean on the railing, looking up at the old satellite dish as he waited for Erik to make his way over to him. The magnekinetic had just finished some basic training outdoors with Raven and Cecily, despite the bleak, overcast weather.

The light was unusually dim for the time of day, making everything seem a bit more dramatic and monochrome. It created a subtle, unsettling parallel with the dreamscape that Erik had been forcing himself to overlook, and he had clearly been looking forward to rejoining Charles.

"That was fast." Charles commented with wan smile, feeling a gloved hand come to rest on his back. Unlike Erik, he wasn't bothered much at all by the parallel, having spent more time in various manifestations of the astral plane prior to our imprisonment.

"I'm keeping you on your toes." Erik joked.

Charles gave him an amused look.

"Shouldn't you be taking it easy?"

"We've been over that already. I feel perfectly fine." Charles replied mildly.

"Ah." was Erik's unusually accepting response. Charles hooked his cane on the frost-covered railing and turned to face him.

"How was training?" He inquired conversationally.

"They're improving. Slowly." Erik remarked, still gazing out over the grounds with a more typical coolness to his manner. Charles sighed and turned back to the fence.

"They're only children, Darling." He gently reminded the other man. Erik's eyebrow twitched at the term 'Darling'. Charles' lips thinned. His gaze flickered over Erik's face and away again, quickly enough that he would've missed it had he not been paying such close attention.

"We both know that isn't true." Erik countered, reaching up and adjusting Charles' navy blue scarf. Charles swallowed as the other man leaned closer resting a strong hand on his shoulder. Charles didn't reply. Instead his hand darted towards his cane but he winced when his wrist was caught in too firm a grip, hovering mere centimeters short of the handle.

"None of that." The imposter chastened.

"Who are you?" Charles demanded, noticing that up close 'Erik' was merely a colorless imitation. The shape-shifter's eyes flickered up to meet his. _Well, not completely colorless._

"Temper, temper." The imposter chastened. "Relax Professor. I'm not here to harm you."

"I couldn't sense you… You felt—"

"Yes, I know. You sensed what you were expecting to, merely a reflection." He explained, his amber eyes studying Charles' face before he added. "So I wouldn't bother doing what you're considering. You'll only do yourself harm."

"And Erik?"

"I wouldn't know." The double admitted. "I only needed to get close." Then the corner of his azure lips quirked up in amusement as he looked at something over Charles' shoulder. "Oh, there he is." He observed sounding noticeably more Welsh. Then he grabbed Charles by the collar and pulled him round to use as a human shield.

"Charles?" Erik called, thrown slightly off-kilter by the sight of his duplicate.

"I'm alright." Charles responded, stumbling as he was pulled backwards a few steps. Erik was staring at his captor. The other Erik's dark hair was paling to a light platinum-blonde. It fanned out into a mess of short spikes as he shrank down from Erik's height to roughly Charles', his features sharpening into a familiar youthful face. Charles frowned and looked back towards his captor as much as his position allowed to see Arawn wink at him.

Erik narrowed his eyes, seeming to take it as a personal slight.

"Thought I'd slip into something a bit more comfortable." Arawn quipped at Charles' incredulous expression.

"You said that you wanted to talk." Charles prompted ignoring the subtext.

"I do."

"Fine then, let me go."

Arawn snorted.

"Sorry, Professor Xavier, but your kin do have an unfortunate penchant for killing me."

"He won't kill you if you let me go." Charles returned, hopefully. Erik shot him a look that contradicted the assertion. "Don't Erik!"

Erik nodded begrudgingly, still looking murderous.

"Let him go." He requested. Arawn raised an eyebrow, unconvinced.

"I'd rather play it safe, actually. Dying does hurt ever so much." He countered, wrapping an arm around Charles' waist and ignoring the angered snarl that it provoked from Erik. "Don't bother." He dismissed. Erik darted forward to stop him but the space around Charles and Apocalypse warped, seeming to fold around them, and then they were gone.

* * *

"Gh!" Charles stumbled forward as the world around him reordered itself. Arawn released his grip and wandered over to sit in front of the ancient stone fireplace.

"The dizziness will pass in a moment." He announced, watching Charles brace himself against the stone wall and squeeze his eyes shut. "The headache can't be helped, that'll last quite a bit longer, but it can't be helped... Or so I've been told."

"Wh—By whom?" Charles inquired shakily, blinking his eyes to try and clear his vision. Arawn looked amused by the non-sequitur.

"Mostly Le Fay, but Sinister might have complained about it as well. None of your lot seem to take the transition well."

"Le Fay?" Charles echoed dazedly.

"Far before your time." Arawn dismissed with a wave.

Charles shook his head, forcing himself to focus. "We're in a castle…"

Arawn nodded patiently.

"How far away have you taken us?"

"France, but never mind that. It's inconsequential." Arawn answered with an impatient wave. "Your sons caused us quite the mess. It's like nothing I've ever seen before, and that is quite a thing."

Charles drifted over to one of the worn wooden chairs and sat down, pulling off his cap so that he could rub at his sore head.

"I don't understand..."

"Nor do I." Arawn admitted. Charles squinted at him. "I know. Not what you meant." Arawn said chucking a bottle of water at him. "Francis and Pietro are time-travelers, yes?"

Charles nodded, taking a drink from the water bottle.

"It's not as simple as that, but I'm not here to discuss the physics of it. The world they've come from is closer to us now than it should be. Bits are falling through. I don't know what it is that they've done, but your friends have disrupted the balance."

"We changed the timeline…" Charles said, trailing off as he considered the assertion.

"This is separate. –or maybe it isn't. I don't know, as I said. I doubt that anyone's done this before." Arawn replied. "And I'm not the only one who's noticed it, that young augur of yours has noticed it too."

"She's not technically mine." Charles stated, surprising himself. Arawn raised an eyebrow at him, his challenging expression only emphasizing Charles' sudden feeling of guilt. "Don't know why I said that…" He mumbled, then frowned. "I thought you were working for Amahl Farouk."

"Technically, I am." Arawn responded drily. "That doesn't mean I don't have my own priorities."

"He wants me dead."

"Yes." Arawn confirmed with a half-shrug. "We all have our hobbies."

Charles' jaw clenched. That _was_ what this was for Apocalypse: his work with the enemy, capturing me, capturing the other X-men, even killing Jamie Moss -all because he was bored.

"You'll understand when you're older." Arawn drawled, undaunted by Charles obvious disapproval. "But regardless of my perceived sins, you should consider what I've told you. This needs to be fixed, and it's your lot who're responsible."

"I don't know what's happening." Charles told him. Arawn nodded and held out his hand to him. Charles eyed it warily, before glancing up at his youthful face. "How long does it take, for human life to seem so worthless that war becomes a game?"

Arawn scoffed.

"The innocence of youth. It isn't about worth. I have lived so many lives, over such a very long time. I might just be the very first of our kind." He explained. "I'll continue on indefinitely, but all of you just flash by so quickly. Many, more or less the same, and friend or foe, I know that you're all already dead. No, it's not about worth at all. In a good year, I come across one or two that're worth remembering." They stared at each other for a long moment. Then Charles finally accepted Apocalypse's hand and let himself be pulled to his feet. He was suddenly glad that the other mutant's mind was more or less masked from him.

"Oh, don't look so depressed. You've got far more relevant things to trouble yourself with." Arawn rebuked and pulled him closer, teleporting them to the edge of the mansion's grounds and releasing Charles to collapse gracelessly on the frost-covered lawn. "If you vomit I am done with you."

As if in reply, Charles rolled into a crouch on his hands and knees, beginning to cough and dry-retch. Arawn grimaced.

"Telepaths." He remarked, then his head snapped up as he caught a flicker of movement out of the corner of his eye. Mere seconds later, Peitro was holding him by the lapels of his coat. Raven, Erik, and Cecily were running towards them from the gravel path.

"You alright, X?" Pietro inquired, glaring down at the amused smile that spread across Arawn's face.

"Uegh… Fine." Charles grumbled roughly, collapsing onto the grass.

"Not a scratch." Arawn agreed. Erik ran over to crouch beside Charles, worriedly brushing his hair out of his face when he rolled onto his back. Charles grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze, reassuring him that he really was fine. Cecily slid to a stop a few meters back and grabbed Raven's hand reflexively when she recognized Arawn, looking like deer caught in headlights.

"Relax, Luv. I'm not here for you." Arawn said, shifting his gaze back to Pietro's face. "You seem to have quite the grudge. Shall we have a little chat about it, or do you have some hidden move up your sleeve that I don't know about?

"You took my sister." Pietro spat. The metal buttons on the shifter's wool coat were shaking forebodingly under Erik's influence.

"That's debatable." Arawn countered, ignoring the threat. Pietro just continued to stare into his face. Arawn tilted his head to the side, his eyes narrowing thoughtfully as Pietro's gaze flicked down to the vibrating metal he reached up to grab Pietro's arms but was immediately thrown backward into a tree by Erik's magnetism.

"Vater." Pietro acknowledged, straightening his trench coat.

"Erik!" Raven exclaimed, rushing forward as Apocalypse teleported over to Erik and grabbed him by the scruff, teleporting them up into the sky and dropping him unceremoniously into a large cluster of thorn bushes. He then reappeared beside Cecily, who let out a little shriek and leapt away.

"Well… I might as well." He reflected, reaching out to grab the frightened teen, but Raven tackled him and punched him hard in the jaw. They both disappeared to reappear in mid air a second later, but when Arawn attempted to shove her away, Raven caught his ankles. She landed on her back in a reverse somersault, slamming him face-first into the ground. He pushed himself up off the ground as she recovered and teleported just in time to avoid her kicking him in the chest. Appearing behind her to grab her by the shoulders and slam her forward into a tree. Then Pietro blurred forward and threw him into the thorn bushes as well, to Erik's satisfaction.

"_Sakandros_!" Arawn cursed, and disappeared… right after Erik broke his nose. He reappeared by Pietro who grabbed him by the throat before he could attack.

"Fuck speedsters." Arawn coughed. Pietro however did not move to attack any further, causing Arawn to frown up at him in confusion.

Charles sat bolt upright when he caught Pietro's thought, and through him, so did Apocalypse.

"No wait!"

Erik reached out to take hold of the metal on Arawn's person, sensing where this might be going.  
Apocalypse nodded to Pietro, whose form rippled faster than the eye could track, creating a burst of wind that knocked Erik away and broke his concentration. The moment that he'd stilled, Arawn reached up and grabbed his arms, teleporting them away.

* * *

**A/N:** Okay, yeah that was a wierd one. I hope you guys liked it. _'Sakandros'_ according to my frustrated bout of googling is supposedly 'Twat' in ancient greek. Feel free to correct me on that if you feel the need. I don't even speek modern greek. Anyway, thanks for reading this. Feedback is always nice. Hint. hint.


	22. Love and War

**Chapter 22**: **Love and War**

I strolled into the living room that evening, resolutely ignoring both the fact that I was meant to remain in bed and my parents lounging on the couch. The former turned out to be a great deal more successful than the latter.

"Francis." Came Charles' muffled accusation. I stilled for a second with my hand hovering over the chess set. He hadn't even pulled back from where he was curled up against Erik's chest.

"Yes Dad?" I responded, sneaking a peek over my shoulder to confirm that, yes, Vater's eyes were still shut. I was probably safe then.

"Why are you downstairs?" Charles continued to interrogate me, although it seemed he was a little bit swayed by the fact that I'd just called him Dad.

"I got bored." I answered honestly, once again reaching for the chess set. There was silence, either because he was considering that or perhaps he'd fallen back to sleep. There was always hope.

"No. Leave the chess set." Hope dashed.

"Why? You're not using it."

"You are meant to be resting."

"What does that have to do with the chess set?"

"Keep your voice down, please." Charles cautioned, sounding less and less sleepy by the second. "Have you finished that physics book that I gave you?"

"The boring one?" I clarified. "No."

"Well, there you are."

I made a displeased sound.

"It is almost dinnertime, Francis. I think you can survive one half hour of studying alone in your room." Charles insisted, finally extricating himself from Erik's arms to sit up and look at me. We stared at each other for a second.

"Fine. I'm going. Enjoy your nap."

"Not the kitchen, your room." Charles corrected.

"Damn." I whispered. Erik's eyes opened to stare coolly up at me.

"Why are you out of bed?"

I let out a sigh.

"I'm mostly better. I got down here didn't I?" I pointed out. "So… Chess?"

"Do I need to escort you?" Charles sighed. The look that Erik shot me decided for me.

"No. I'm going. Christ!" I said and left. As soon as I was gone, Erik pulled Charles back into his previous position. Apparently, the sudden cold when Charles moved was what had woken him.

"Physics homework?" Erik asked. Charles smiled sheepishly.

"It was mostly Hank's idea. He thought that it might be useful, considering his mutation."

"Mmm." Erik murmured in response, falling back to sleep. Then he was woken up once again when Charles jolted into a seated position. "What?"

"The chess board." Charles stated, staring at it.

"What about it?" Erik inquired, finally sitting up himself. They'd been having such a nice rest.

"The pieces have been reordered." Charles said, moving over to look at the placement of the pieces. "I don't think the children did this." He added, picking up the board, careful not to jostle the pieces. There was a piece of folded paper tucked neatly underneath. Erik reached past him and pulled it out.

"What does it say?" Charles asked, sitting back down beside him. Erik passed it to him.

"Your move." Charles read aloud. He didn't recognize the handwriting.

"It's for you." Erik noted, pointing out the word 'Professor' written neatly on the outside of the folded-over note.

"Apocalypse must've done this before he met me by the path." Charles surmised distractedly, leaning forward to study the board. "Oh, we're white."

* * *

I had just reached the top of the stairs when I spotted Cecily coming out of her room headed in the opposite direction. She stalled at the sight of me, almost dropping her sketchpad.

"Oh, uh… Hey. Francis, right?" She greeted awkwardly. "I thought you had to stay in your room."

I narrowed my eyes in displeasure. "Really? Even you?"

She opened her mouth to speak but I continued instead.

"You don't seem to be up to anything important."

"Well—"

"Perfect. Fancy a game of Rummy?"

"Um…" Cecily blinked in surprise this time when I didn't interrupt her. "Okay, sure. It could be fun."

Downstairs Marie came into the living room to see Erik lying back on the couch with one arm thrown over his eyes, and Charles leaning meditatively over the chess board.

"Is this a bad time?" She asked, looking at Erik. He sighed.

"I'm already awake." He admitted, uncovering his face. "Did you need something?"

"I was sorta wonderin' what we were plannin' to do about Pete." Marie said uncertainly.

"He doesn't want us to interfere." Charles replied, still considering the board. "I think they're meant to be us."

Marie shot Erik a questioning look.

"Apocalypse seems to have left a message for him." Erik explained. Marie nodded and stepped closer, looking at the board.

"So you mean, like, you're the White King and Farouk, well… That goes without sayin' I guess."

Charles nodded.

"You see, this is Pietro." He indicated the trapped bishop. Marie nodded and smiled.

"I suppose that makes Erik the White Q—" She broke off suddenly as a thought occurred to her.

"Marie?" Erik asked, studying her face.

"Is everything alright?" Charles queried, finally pulling his attention away from the board, but she just turned and ran out of the room as though she'd forgotten that they were even there.

* * *

Emma sat up on her cot and walked over to the reinforced window to face her new visitor.

"You know, my answer is still going to be the same." She drawled, resting her hands on her hips. "No matter how many times you come here and ask."

"Yes. I do." Stryker replied amicably. "You are a survivor though. I can tell that much just by looking at you, and sooner or later, you're going to realize that you're on the losing team."

"That doesn't mean that I'll side with you."

"No. No, you won't." He admitted, then let out a regretful sigh. Emma's brow furrowed in confusion. Stryker shrugged. "It still would've been nice to see how you turned out."

Emma jumped at the loud hiss from behind her and spun round to see thick white gas being vented into her cell. She coughed and tugged up the collar of her prison jumpsuit to cover her nose and mouth. The gas was filling her cell at an alarming rate. Emma whirled back around to face him, banging forcefully on the window with her diamond fist until the reinforced glass finally began to crack. Stryker's dark eyes surveyed the scene impassively.

"Yes, such a shame." He reflected as she began to falter, sliding down the glass with an unpleasant scratching sound. "Well, you know…" He turned around walking calmly away as the gas finally stopped. "Love and war."

* * *

"He can't have just meant Wanda…" Charles thought aloud. Erik set down his glass and shot the telepath a questioning look.

"When Arawn kidnapped me and took me to France—"

"He took you to France?" Sean interjected causing Erik and most of the others seated around the dinner table to glare at him.

"The location is of little consequence." I intoned coolly without looking up from my steak. "He was always a terrible flirt..."

"Stop it." Raven cautioned in a hushed voice. It was both strange and familiar to have her in that maternal role, but she had seamlessly slipped into character since Marie had fallen into complete silence this evening. Charles cleared his throat awkwardly before continuing.

"As I was saying, he mentioned concerns that our two timelines have become snagged on each other somehow. He said that things were beginning to fall through from your time into ours." He explained, looking a little rosy cheeked. Erik certainly noticed. I hid my smirk behind my mug. This version was so gloriously easy to mess with.

"You think that more people came through?" Darwin said.

"I think there was more that came through than we know about, at least." Charles agreed. _~No need to be so upset Erik. Nothing happened, I assure you.~ _Charles projected to the jealous mutant. _~I believe that Francis is simply trying to push your buttons.~_

I glared at Charles. Erik turned to regard me with suspicion. I casually returned my attention to my plate.

_~I believe we've gained an audience. Haven't we, Francis?~_ Erik projected to Charles. I didn't react, I'm not that obvious.

_~It was probably just a slip.~_ Charles suggested diplomatically. _~He's not very focused yet.~_

Erik didn't seem too convinced, but let it drop. He was still feeling a bit prickly about what he perceived to be my total lack of respect the personal boundaries of others. It's a load of bollocks if you ask me. I do have respect for _some_ personal boundaries. It just varies from person to person.

_~Actually, speaking of focus…~_ He piped up suddenly a couple of minutes later.

I choked on my cider when I realized where that particular train of thought seemed to be heading.

"Ooh. Careful." Cecily said, patting my back. Marie was squinting warily between me and my inappropriately victorious looking Vater.

"What have we learned?" He inquired smoothly when I'd caught my breath again.

"I think I miss your helmet." I ground out in annoyance.

"Francis!" Raven exclaimed, upon realizing what I'd been doing. "That is _so_ rude!"

"Surprisingly well-focused, though." I heard Charles observe under his breath, and smiled. The others shot him incredulous looks. "Not that I'm condoning what you did." He added in a sterner and more audible tone.

I rolled my eyes. Charles looked away, his eyes going glazed for a moment.

"Oh dear." He observed, looking concerned. He hastily set his napkin down beside his plate and got up. "Excuse me."

He was gone from the room before anyone could ask about it. All the others, apart from Erik and Marie, looked at me.

"What?" I snapped.

"What was…" Alex gestured towards the doorway that Charles had just exited.

"I don't know. Ask him." I nodded towards Erik. They shifted their gazes to the stone-faced magnekinetic.

"Logan is here." He offered non-commitally. Marie and Raven both instantly perked up.

" 'Scuse me." Marie muttered and quickly left.

* * *

"What happened?" Charles asked, rushing over and holding the door open for a stubbornly struggling Logan. Logan grunted in acknowledgment and hurried over to dump his inordinately heavy burden onto the living room couch, with Charles flitting worriedly around behind him.

"Ughh." Logan groaned, relieved, as he plopped down into the armchair. Charles knelt down and patted at the passed out mutant's cheek.

"Cain?"

"Don't bother. Trust me, Chuck. He's out." Logan assured him. Charles scowled, although it's uncertain how much that was due to the puncture wound he'd just spotted on his long lost stepbrother's neck rather than the unfitting moniker. "They were shooting darts at us. Giant. Darts."

"Did you keep the—" Charles began, Logan pulled a sizable metal dart out of his pocket and held it up for him to look at. "That does seem unnecessarily large." Charles noted as Marie joined them.

"He took two of them before he blacked out." Logan reported sounding mildly impressed. Marie stared at it, taking the dart from him and studying it.

"Careful, Hank's going to want to look at that." Charles reminded her, then turned back to Logan. "Where's the other one?"

"Oh, I lost his. That one's mine." Logan said with a shrug. "I guess they don't work on me."

"Who attacked you guys, anyway?" Marie inquired as she carefully placed the dart down on the coffee table. Charles stared at her in slight surprise. It was the first thing she'd said since she'd fled the room earlier. Logan squinted suspiciously back and forth between them, feeling that he was missing something. They could hear Hank coming toward them down the hall. Charles had summoned him from his lab to help the moment that he'd reached the front door.

"…I'm not sure." Logan admitted. "They were dressed in military gear, all in black."

"Like Farouk's guys?" Marie questioned, sounding almost hopeful.

"I don't know. None of them were mutants." Logan replied, looking away. He shifted in his chair uncomfortably.

"There was something else." Charles prompted, moving out of the way so that Hank could look over his new patient.

"Yeah." Logan admitted. "They smelled like a science lab."

* * *

Wanda jumped up from where she'd been curled up on her shabby metal bed and crossed over to the bars when she saw two of the guards escorting her twin brother to the door of her cage.

"Pete." She said anxiously.

"Step back from the bars." One of his guards ordered. She pulled her gaze away from Pietro's face to look at the guard, then back again uncertainly. "I said step back." The guard warned.

"Okay. Okay." Wanda agreed and backed away, crossing her arms over her chest. She was still in the thin white T-shirt and white sleep-pants she'd been wearing during her 'treatment', not at all warm enough for the cool, damp climate of the basement. Pietro glanced back at the guards, entirely unimpressed as one shoved him into the cage, and raised his eyebrows at Wanda. She just looked back over his shoulders to watch them slam the door shut behind him with a loud clang.

"Nice to see you again." Pietro greeted warmly. She just stared at him. Neither of them spoke again until the guards were well out of sight. "Didn't miss me?" He prompted. Wanda's expression darkened.

"What the hell are you doing here?" She demanded in a carefully controlled voice.

"I missed _you_."

"Do you have any idea how serious this is?" Wanda demanded.

"Yes. Not at all relieved that I'm not dead, then?"

"Of course I am!" Wanda snapped, her voice rising in volume. She caught her self and clamped her jaw shut to stare mutely at him, before breaking down and pulling him into a tight hug.

"Ah, much better. We'll get out of here."  
"We'd better. If you don't, I will kill you myself."

Pietro smiled and tightened the hug.

"I suppose the odds aren't in our favor this time." He concluded. Wanda pulled away, crossing her arms again and shrugged stiffly.

"The odds of mutual survival are 59.191 to 1 against."

Pietro winced, but quickly recovered.

"Oh well. It might not be so bad."

"It is."

"Wanda." He chastened, inspecting their surroundings. "Look on the bright side. At least we're together again."

Wanda was certainly trying, but her pout made it obvious to him just how little she was succeeding. Pietro took of his suit-jacket and wrapped it around her shoulders, returning his attention to his perusal of their prison.

"We've beaten greater odds." He stated carelessly. Her stare intensified, and he let out a huff. "I was pronounced dead you know." Then he spun away from the bars of their cage to look her in the eyes. "You are awfully tense right now, especially for you."

Wanda pursed her lips, not responding to the implied question, then took a deep breath.

"Fine." She said, businesslike and pulled her hair back into a messy knot as she continued. "Do you have a plan?"

"None whatsoever." Pietro replied in a similar tone.

"Good." Wanda remarked with the hint of a smile quirking her lips. "You were always more effective that way."

* * *

**A/N:** Yeah, sorry about the wait guys, and thanks for reading. Feedback anyone?


	23. A Matter of Perspective

**Chapter 23: A Matter of Perspective**

"Why are you staring at me like that?"

"You stopped talking."

_Time to roll my eyes now._

"I simply don't see the point of recounting events to you that you've already lived through." _Oh look, he's doing that face-scrub thing again. He's tired. I must really be wearing my poor uncle down._

"I understand that, Francis."

"Onslaught."

"Francis." _Ugh, still too stubborn. _"I can see why that would seem pointless to you, but part of the reason that I'm here is to learn your take on things, including the stuff _I_ did."

"That sounds surprisingly reflective of you, Juggernaught." _And he winces. How sentimental._ "You almost sound like your stepbrother. Has he affected you?"

"This isn't a trick, Sport. You know that. Now come on, what happened next?"

"You're not funny. …Fine."

* * *

As you _already_ know, Charles had taken your childhood separation rather hard. This prompted him to hover around you while you slept off the effects of the giant darts. Erik was bothered by his preoccupation, but he understood. Fortunately for him, things were going rather swimmingly in Charles' virtual absence. In fact things were calm and peaceful and boring enough to lull us into an understandable, false sense of security just in time for lunch.

"Do you want to talk about it?" I asked without looking up from the cards in my hand.

"About what?" Marie replied from her seat in the armchair to my left. Cecily arched a pale eyebrow in mild interest, shifting in her seat opposite me.

"Then could you leave the lounge, please? It's hard enough to read Cecily's poker-face without being subjected to your feelings." I informed her. Cecily gave a subtle nod, apparently deciding that I _was_ still acting in character.

"You got a problem with my mind, you make a wall." Marie responded irritably, still failing to read her book. "Bein' a telepath ain't no excuse for bein' so damn rude."

"Your accent's gotten heavier." I observed in reply.

Sean looked from me to my cousin hopefully, as if expecting us to jump up and amuse him with some interpretive dance.

"Alex?" I called as he reclaimed his seat.

"I fold."

"Why?" I asked, honestly curious. He had a good hand.

"Not your problem." Alex replied. I huffed, then glared at Sean who'd folded moments before. Cecily smiled.

"Nervous, Junior?"

"I only wanted to inflict more of my chores upon them. Vater would whoop my arse if I tried to make you clean out our training area."

"Sounds like an excuse to me." Cecily sang, studying me closely for some non-existent tell. Alex snorted.

"That's 'cause you haven't seen their trainin' area." Marie sneered.

"I still can't figure out how they got that pudding so stuck up there." Sean reflected, looking almost proud of our accomplishment.

"It was an amazing throw." I admitted. Alex smiled. He _was_ proud of the accomplishment. Cecily straightened up and stopped chewing on her lower lip.

"As impressed as I am, I still think that you're bluffing." She decided, pushing the rest of her handmade vouchers forward into the pile. "All in."

"Oooh!" Alex and Sean called in unison, leaning closer to watch. I locked eyes with her and nodded impassively, turning my cards over. It wasn't going to matter for long.

"Ha! I knew it! Read 'em and weep, for I am victorious." Cecily exclaimed, accepting high fives from the others.

"To a point." I amended as Erik strolled in.

"Son of a…" Alex cursed, trying to block the poker game from view. I leaned back in my chair with my arms crossed behind my head. Erik squinted suspiciously at us, and used the metal in Alex's chair to nudge him out of the way.

"I thought I'd forbidden you from gambling."

I gave a mock gasp.

"Marie! Why didn't you stop me?!" I demanded dramatically.

"Because I hate you." Marie snarked right back. The muscle in Erik's jaw twitched, prompting the others to scramble to calm him down.

"Well, um. Look at it this way: It's not for money or anything." Sean began.

"We're sorry?" Cecily quickly added, but it sort of came out as a question.

"We won't do it again." Sean continued.

"We promise." Alex agreed.

"Yes. They won't do it again." I added, just to be a troll. What? I was tired of everything going so smoothly. It's not natural. All three of my compatriots turned to send me poisonous glares.

"Shut up, Francis! I don't want to melt again." Cecily snapped in an unsuccessful whisper, leaning towards me over the table with laser-like focus. Erik actually looked almost apologetic about that. Perhaps Cecily was a tiny bit psychic herself because she instantly tuned back to him to add "It was an accident." In the same breath.

Erik nodded, then stared down the rest of us (mostly me) with his serious-face.

* * *

"When isn't he wearing his serious face? The man was born stern."

"Look, you wanted me to tell the story. If you expect me to allow a running commentary of interruptions—"

"Alright, alright! Just pretend I'm not here."

_What?_

"If I pretend you're not here, who am I telling the story to?"

"I don't know, just make someone up and continue… An adoring audience or something… Yeah, I thought you'd like that. Go ahead."

* * *

Anyway, as I was saying…

"You still have yet to clean up that mess that you two made in the bunker." Erik prompted. Alex jumped up to comply like a good little boy. I rolled my eyes.

"We've got people for that." I pointed out. Apparently, that was the wrong thing to say. Erik raised an eyebrow at me as if to say 'oh, really?' and then I was being pulled to my feet by the metal on my person. At least he was being gentle about it this time.

"Erik." Marie cautioned, watching us tensely.

"Yes, _Sir_." I told him and left.

* * *

"Charles." Erik said as he came over to stand beside Charles' chair, resting hand on the worn-out telepath's shoulder. Charles smiled wanly up at him in greeting, placing his hand over Erik's.

"He hasn't even twitched since Logan brought him back."

"They must've used a powerful sedative." Erik remarked. Charles snorted, looking up from his stepbrother's navy-blue bedspread for a brief moment.

"You're still trying to make me feel better." He observed. Then let out a heavy sigh, returning his attention to the bed. "He isn't even dreaming. I can sense him, very faintly, but whatever they gave him… It wasn't a simple sedative."

"And I suppose you'd be an expert on sedatives." Erik pointed out.

"Yes, actually." Charles replied, to Erik's surprise and discomfort. The younger man had that look in his eyes again. The _old_ look, that didn't rightly belong in a twenty-four-year-old's face. Erik opened his mouth to ask but Charles beat him to it.

"I was always this way. When I was still a child, I made the mistake of speaking aloud about the voices in my head. Needless to say, the first conclusion that my mother jumped to was not telepathy." Charles hastily explained. "And when my stepfather figured out what I was… Well, there was a reason that Cain attacked him."

"He experimented on you." Erik concluded. Charles could feel the fury rolling off of him in waves.

"Yes." Charles confirmed, turning to face him properly, attempting to placate him. "That was a very long time ago."

Erik, who clearly wasn't buying it, opened his mouth to argue, only to be cut off by a rough-sounding chuckle from the bed before them. It quickly turned into a cough.

"Ahck, hmm. Only you, Charlie—" Cain then proceeded into a coughing fit that completely obliterated the meaning of that statement. Charles just stared for a moment before snapping himself out of it and fetching the much needed glass of water. Cain grunted eloquently in what Charles chose to interpret as thanks.

* * *

"'Cain' did? I'm not sure how to take that."

"Shut up. You're not here."

* * *

"Whhk."

Charles grimaced at his stepbrother's hacking sound.

"H-" Cain touched the bandage on the side of his neck and Charles made a little aborted swatting motion.

"You shouldn't touch that." He fussed quietly. Erik had his arms crossed over his chest and was watching the exchange with great interest.

"Who's he?" Cain asked, jabbing a thumb in Erik's direction. Charles raised an eyebrow as he noticed that he already knew the answer.

"Erik Lensherr." Erik deadpanned. Cain gave a curt nod and continued on as if Erik wasn't there.

"How long was I out of it?"

"I'm uncertain of precisely how long Logan was carrying you," Charles said "but judging by your weight-No offence- And the fact that he was still—"

"Watch it, Nerd."

"About ten to twelve hours in total." Charles finished, avoiding eye contact.

"That's gotta be a record." Cain remarked, poking at the bandage over his ribs, which prompted a helpless little "No…" to slip from Charles' lips in protest.

"You've been tranquilized before?" Erik inquired, studying the unfamiliar mutant, calculatingly.

"Yeah, a few times. I've been on the run since my 'death'. Half the time they don't even work," Cain exaggerated, "but the guy that had me this time really knew what he was doing."

"The Shadow King." Charles supplied.

"Right." Cain agreed distractedly, then took note of Charles' lost puppy expression. "What?"

"I thought you'd died. We all did." Charles lamented. Cain looked annoyed.

"That was the idea."

"Why?"

"Reasons." Cain slapped Charles' arm when he didn't stop pouting, ignoring the younger man's wince. "Come on, stop being such a girl. Jesus! You'd think you hadn't grown up with a multimillion dollar fortune and a cute little shape-shifter sister to keep you company."

Erik's eyes narrowed disapprovingly.

"Don't act denser than you already are." Charles responded, surprising himself and wondering briefly whether Raven or, heaven forbid, I, was rubbing off on him.

"That's more like it." Cain approved, popping his neck. Charles tried once again not to look grossed out. He ended up looking merely disapproving, and vaguely reminiscent of his mother. Cain scrubbed a hand over his eyes and looked around the room before turning to finally catch his stepsibling's gaze.

"So… You have a kid. How did _that_ happen?"

* * *

Moira was just arriving back at her apartment when she heard her phone ringing.

"Great! Ok. Great." She shuffled forward to set down her groceries on the coffee table and ran over to her phone, catching it on the last ring. "Hello! MacTaggart."

"_Agent MacTaggart, I'm glad I caught you." _Captain Kinkaid said, sounding somewhat relieved.

"Oh, um, Captain." Moira cursed internally, she'd forgotten his name again. "Is everything okay with your niece? I thought Xavier would be able to start training her by now."

"_Oh, no, no. Cecily's doing fine, Sir. It's kind of you to ask, but—I was calling about an ongoing case of yours."_

"Well then you should really call Pete. I'm still on leave." Moira replied, bending down to pull her shoes off. "He's probably more equipped to handle it anyway, he's surprisingly experienced."

"_I would…"_ Captain Kinkaid responded uneasily. Moira paused in mid-motion with her jacket halfway off her shoulder. She was beginning to get the feeling that he was worried about someone on his end listening in.

"Captain?"

"_MIA at the moment."_ He added cryptically. Yep, she was sure of it now, he was censoring himself. _"I know it's unconventional, but I thought that you should know about her situation. You were the one who acquired Frost for us, after all."_

Moira straightened up, feeling like someone had just dumped a bucket of ice-water over her head.

"_They're still not sure how the unsub got in in the first place. I've got to go. The Colonel's arrived."_

"Wait. What about, Konstantinov?" Moira inquired, pulling her jacket back on.

"_No further developments at this time."_

Moira let out a relieved breath. Azazel had turned himself in as much for her sake as any of the others. She owed him better protection than this.

"I'll be there in fifteen. Stall him."

"_Understood." _Captain Kinkaid said and hung up.

"Shit. Moira cursed, pulling her shoes on and looking contemplatively at her groceries. "Shit." There was just too much going on. She feared she'd never get any time off at this rate._ Pete's MIA? Since when? Someone took out Frost! The mole? Fuck! I just bought milk! I'd better put that away before I leave. There. Now, go. Keys! _Shegrabbed up her keys and slammed the door behind her, leaving most of the shopping lying forgotten in the living room.

* * *

"You have any idea when we should make our escape?" Pietro inquired casually as he watched Wanda pace their cell like a caged tiger.

"You have to ask?" Wanda recited.

"Nope." Pietro admitted, tucking his hands behind his head as he sprawled out further over the metal cot. "Getting bored though. I thought perhaps we might strike up a conversation."

"Not with me."

"With whom, then?" Pietro prompted. Wanda leaned back against the bars on the far right and looked up to meet his eyes.

"Coming in, three, two…" She jabbed a thumb over her shoulder without looking, just as Arawn and Sinister came into view.

"Oh joy." Pietro remarked, jumping up off the cot and strolling forward to face their captors.

"Your name is Pietro Maximoff, yes?" Sinister drawled.

"That is what people call me." Pietro confirmed. Wanda crossed over to curl up on the abandoned cot with her back to the three men.

"Or is it, Peter Frank?" Sinister countered.

"That, too." Pietro replied amiably.

"Or is it Mateo Magnussen?"

"You find me quite interesting, don't you?" Pietro remarked drily. Arawn smirked ever-so-slightly from his place at Sinister's left shoulder.

"Now there's no need to be rude. I understand that you already know both our names." Sinister replied with in ineffective smile. "What should we call you?"

"Pick one, I assure you I have no preference." Pietro replied, still all smiles and casual gestures.

"I hear you're quite the speedster, Agent."

"Or you could go with that. No need to be all sore about it." Pietro observed, looking to Arawn. "Bit of a control freak, eh?"

Arawn gave a pleasant little half nod and Sinister turned to shoot him a stern look. Arawn merely raised his brows in silent challenge. Sinister returned his attention to their now smirking captive.

"I am a speedster? Yes. Will I help you? No." Peitro informed him.

"We don't intend to ask for your permission."

"Yeah, once again. It all comes down to control."

"Careful, Pete. Your speed won't do you much good inside the cage. It's probably best you don't make yourself a bother." Arawn cautioned.

"I let you bring me here. Does that earn me nothing?" Peitro replied jokingly.

Arwan shook his head with another faint smile.

"What else can you do?" Sinister queried impatiently.

"I can do lots of things." Pietro said. Wanda rolled her eyes. He was a nightmare when he was restless; it was why _he_ was never grounded when they were little. The mansion wouldn't have survived it.

"Such as?" Arawn prompted, eyeing Sinister's aggravated expression.

"Well I can bake a pretty tasty cake, if I do say so myself, and you know, once when I was little I managed to climb all the way up to the roof without getting spotted. Walked right across the gables too. I've got excellent balance." Pietro announced.

"He's still taking the piss." Arawn lamented, not looking terribly disappointed.

"This is not a game, Agent Maximoff." Sinister growled.

"Everything's a game." Pietro disagreed.

"Take note." Wanda interjected softly. Arawn took a few prudent steps back from the cage without making a sound.

Pietro smirked down at Sinister. "Anymore questions?"

Sinister stepped forward to catch his gaze, intending to punish him for his defiance. Pietro stared blankly for a few seconds, appearing to succumb to Sinister's influence as he leaned forward against the bars. Then his whole body began to vibrate, with building intensity.

"What the?!" Sinister said, trying to retain control. The bars began to screech, then the clanging grew to almost deafening levels before the hinges gave out completely. Pietro stopped vibrating then blurred to one side and hurled the door into Sinister, knocking him out cold.

"Oh yes. I can also do that." Pietro informed the unconscious madman. He looked over at Arawn. "You going to stop us?"

Arawn paused for a second, then shook his head.

"Nah, they wouldn't know what to do with her, preoccupied with power as they are." Arawn remarked. "The others will, of course. I may be inclined to assist them."

His eyes were scarlet once again, but Pietro figured that it could just be an instinctive reaction to his proximity to his recent act of demolition. Pietro nodded his acknowledgment and started down the corridor.

"Thank you." Wanda said politely as she passed the older mutant on her way out of the cell. He winked and teleported away. Wanda's polite smile vanished and she hurried to catch up with her twin brother.

* * *

**A/N:** Okay, so as you may have noticed, this was really a tough chapter for me. It was the first one that really had more than just a fleeting/vague glimpse of the Narrator(Francis') present. I wanted it to be a bit like a fly-on-the wall perspective, in which we're experiencing his present as a passive observer in his mind with him. I tried to make it make sense, but I'm not sure how I feel about it. Still working on that aspect, unfortunately. So please tell me what you think?


	24. God Does A Cameo

**Chapter 24: A God Does a Cameo**

I walked into my bedroom, already beginning to strip off my soiled clothes and not really looking where I was going. It's a bad habit that one tends to develop being telepathic. You grow accustomed to the idea that you'll sense others coming from a distance.

"Well. This is awkward." A feminine voice remarked from the bed. I finished pulling my undershirt off and looked over at… Cecily. She seemed more amused than uncomfortable.

"You're sitting on my bed." I observed expressionlessly.

"That I am." She confirmed with a smirk then hastily ducked the sweaty shirt I threw at her. "Gross!"

"Why are you sitting on my bed?" I inquired, crossing over to the chest of drawers on her other side to pick out some fresh clothes.

"I was waiting to talk to you. What's that tattoo on your collarbone?"

"It's more of a brand." I explained, then sighed at her troubled expression. "Don't. I wasn't born naturally like you and the others. I was made. This barcode indicates my designation."

"Did it hurt?"

"I can't feel anything." I reminded her as I debated which shirt in front of me I'd rather wear.

"The blue." Cecily indicated helpfully. I paused, then pulled out the maroon one, causing her to roll her eyes. "There's something weird going on with the adults right now, isn't there?" She asked, trying to keep her tone light.

"The adults." I echoed, setting my clothes down on the corner of the bed by her lacey-socked feet and turning to face her. "I assume you're referring to my parents."

"And Marie, and that grumpy guy with the hair…" She gestured by the sides of her head, miming Logan's unique look. "And—"

"I get the gist." I cut in, crossing my arms over my chest. "Yes, there is a bit of something going on. Charles and Erik have decided it's best to keep you and Jubilee out of it as much as possible."

"I still want to know what's going on." Cecily protested.

"And you came to me because…"

"Someone tried to kidnap me! They _did_ kidnap you and Jubilee and now they've taken Agent Frank!" Cecily pushed.

"Ah, and you imagine my experience will make me more sympathetic." I deduced.

"I would have said understanding." Cecily admitted. I shrugged and looked meaningfully to the door. Cecily crossed her arms and sat back against the headboard with a stubborn scowl.

"It isn't that they don't understand, Cecily. The problem is that they care about you." I clarified.

"_You_ don't." Cecily pointed out. She didn't sound at all judgmental about it, which was refreshing.

"No. I don't."

"So, why not tell me?"

I squinted at her for a moment.

"I want to take a shower." I replied.

"Then you shouldn't take too long." Cecily countered. I folded.

"There's a mutant who calls himself the Shadow King. He's a telepath without a physical body of his own who's become trapped in an astral form. He has a history with the Professor that I have neither the time nor the interest to get into. All you need to know is that only Charles, and perhaps I, myself, have the power to counter him."

"He's the guy that tried to have me kidnapped."

"Yes."

"Why?"

"I can't be certain, but the obvious answer would be to use us as hosts. However, we now believe that he may be building an army."

"An army! For what?" Cecily asked, leaning forward. I shrugged.

"Don't know. Get out. It's time for my shower." I ordered, waving her out with my handful of clean clothes.

* * *

"Duck!" Wanda warned, saving her twin brother from being impaled by a rather nasty looking flying blade. The dark metal missed his ducking head by a hair and whooshed past to embed itself deep in the ancient tree in front of him. Pietro regarded the weapon with a wince and swallowed.

Wanda grabbed his arm and forced him to keep running.

"Odds are the other speedster's just toying with us." She panted, stealing a glance over her shoulder at the silhouette that flickered in and out of focus, too close behind them. Pietro glared at her.

"You're really in a sour mood today, aren't you, Miss Positive." He remarked as they continued to flee through the woods. They were almost to the far edge now, which was good. Hopefully, they would reach the road before their pursuers -or really, _pursuer_- caught up with them. When Pietro had mentioned this, Wanda had asked him flatly whether or not he'd like to know the odds of that happening. He didn't.

"We need to get a message out! He needs to be stopped whether or not we make it out of here!" Wanda stated taking cover behind a tree to her left.

"Which we will." Pietro cut in, then dropped down to avoid being impaled by another flying blade. "_Damn_ it!" He rolled to the side and out of sight, going utterly silent, not even slightly out of breath from running so long at what was actually a pretty low speed for him. Wanda closed her eyes and pressed a hand over her mouth, trying to stifle the sounds of her own ragged breath, and focused on drawing an illusion around them. The enemy speedster blurred into view to stand in the open area between their hiding places, frowning suspiciously and looking around. He could have sworn that the air around him had… flickered. But luckily the Maximoff twins didn't have a reputation yet in this timeline, so he couldn't possibly be prepared for what was coming.

"Where'd they go?" He questioned, confused. He blurred around the clearing a couple of times in search of clues, but of course there where none that he could see. Finally he retracted the twin blades attached to his forearms and pulled off his mask so that he could drag a hand over his sweaty face. "Huh…"

With a soft whoosh and a blur of red and cream, Pietro swooped across the clearing and their pursuer was suddenly gone. Wanda lowered her hand, letting out the breath she'd been holding as she dropped the illusion. It was time to take her chance.

* * *

"For the last time, Charlie, I feel fine. Now quit your damn hovering!" Cain snapped, glaring across the dining table at Charles pacing on the other side. Erik put down his mug and snagged the telepath's waist, pulling him into the chair beside him next time he passed. Cain stared icily at the magnekinetic, but then just shifted his attention back to his beer.

"That snarl sure sounds familiar." Raven's voice responded before the shape-shifter herself appeared in the doorway. Alex entered right behind her, carrying a sleepy Jubilee on his back.

"Evening, Chickie." Cain replied lightly, unaffected by her disapproving expression "Long time, no argument. Are we going to catch up?"  
Alex paused in the doorway to eye Raven and Cain before he walked over to Charles and Erik.

"Isn't it time for her nap by now?" Charles inquired softly, turning his seat around to face them.

"Yeah, I know. We were trying to get her to go to sleep, but she's refusing to stay in her room." Alex explained. In the background, Raven and Cain had just finished staring each other down.

"So, why aren't you dead?" Raven questioned viciously. Cain slammed down his mug a little too loudly, snapping the others' attention to him for a brief moment.

"Wow. Ouch. You sure sound disappointed." He shot back in a cold monotone. Raven cocked her head to one side with a challenging air.

Charles took a deep calming breath, returning his attention to the stubbornly awake little girl on Alex's back, knowing the others would sort themselves out. Jubilee wasn't afraid this time, simply determined.

"You know you need to get your rest." He reminded her gently. "You can come out and play again after your nap."

Jubilee shook her head.

"Nuh-uh! I wanna see Francis." She returned. Alex sighed.

"See what I'm dealing with here?"

Erik spared him a fleeting glance, looking back to Jubilee just in time to swoop forward and catch her when she pushed off of Alex's shoulders.

"That'll be quite enough of that." Charles informed her as Erik set her down on his abandoned seat and Alex tried to calm his racing heart.

"Where's Francis?" Jubilee demanded.

"You're just great with kids, you know that?" Cain remarked sarcastically to Charles. Raven punched his shoulder, which naturally, he barely felt at all, and Erik raised an eyebrow at the childish pair.

"Francis is busy at the moment, Dear. You can see him after—" Charles began to assure Jubilee, but she cut him off.

"I need to see him now! I promised!" She insisted, beginning to look distressed.

"Promised, who did you promise?" Charles asked.

"The big green man." Jubilee answered innocently. Erik's eyes narrowed.

"What big green man?" Charles asked with a slight frown.

"The big green man in the closet."

Erik and Cain were both moving towards the door before the others had even processed the admission. Jubilee's little nighttime episodes tended to be more tangible than your average six-year-old's.

"Hey! No!" Jubilee squealed. "It's supposed to be Francis!" They ignored her.

"I can handle this Marko." Erik told Cain as they jogged up the stairs.

"Not a chance, Lensherr. This is _my_ house." Cain retorted, not the least bit deterred and pushed past him to the top of the stairs.

He paused when he reached the hall, uncertain of which room belonged to Jubilee.

"Actually, Juggernaut, I think you'll find it's the Professor's house now." An accented male voice responded silkily from one of the rooms to his right as Erik caught up to him. "You gave up your claim to it when you 'burned to death'."

Cain followed Erik into the child's room to find a tall, raven-haired man dressed in expensive-looking green and black clothing standing in the closet and smirking at them.

"Who are _you_?" Cain queried, exchanging an incredulous look with Erik.

"That is the question." The man replied in a playful tone of voice, his emerald eyes sparkling with mischief.

"And how do you fit in that closet?" Cain added as an afterthought. Both the other men turned to shoot him incredulous looks. "What?"

Erik shook it off and returned his attention to the man in the closet.

"How and why are you here?" He demanded, reaching out with his magnetism to take hold of the metal on the larger man's person.

"I'm a message for Mr. Eisenhart." The intruder replied with a teasing wink. Cain raised his eyebrows. Erik bristled.

"What message?" He snapped. The green man rolled his eyes and let out a sigh, looking exasperated, but fondly so, like a friend who'd long grown accustomed to the others' antics.

"The _other_ Eisenhart." He clarified. Erik, having found no metal on the stranger's person -despite the sizable metal belt-buckle in clear view- called the loose change he carried with him out into the air and readied to attack. The stranger graced him with an unimpressed look before adding, "April 11th," and pausing, ignoring the floating metal projectiles as if to listen for something. There was a muffled sound of running feet. "Ah, he's got the gist." The stranger deduced, just as Erik lost his patience and launched a few coins at his head. There was a ripple of red light around the room and then the intruder was simply gone, leaving no sign that he'd ever been there at all.

* * *

Charles glanced out through the dining room doorway to see me streak past, still damp from my shower and in the process of putting my shirt on.

"What in the world?" He muttered and followed after me. "Where are you running off to like—"

I ignored him unlocking the door and yanking it open.

"Just wait a moment." He called a little more urgently; I could feel his mind reaching out for mine and took a page out of his book, creating a maze around the relevant thoughts and memory systems. "Francis?"

I continued to ignore him, moving to leave.

"Oh for—" Charles exclaimed, gesturing gracefully with one hand, and the door in front of me slammed shut. I turned to look at him, my expression completely void of emotion.

"Don't try to stop me."

"Why? Where are you going?" Charles inquired.

I rested my hand on the knob, still looking unblinkingly up into his face. "Release your hold. Now."

"No. What are you—" Charles was thrown off his feet as I reached out towards him and transitioned my hand without the slightest warning. I then pulled the door open and strode out, not bothering to look back at him.

"Francis?!" Charles called, scooping up his cane and chasing after me. I kept moving at a brisk walk, headed for Logan's truck. "Francis, stop!" He shouted, reaching out a hand, and I did just that _against_ my own will, caught in his invisible grip. Charles stumbled, reeling at the wave of dangerous aggression that was still exuding from my consciousness as it continued to grow in intensity. Then he drew himself up straighter and walked round to face me, leaning on his cane a tad more heavily than usual. "What is this?" He demanded, searching my face for any clue to the cause of my sudden change. Marie and Logan were running out to join us, having heard the loud crash caused by my partial transition, and I could sense Cain and Erik drawing closer as well. I didn't have much time. I had to finish this. "Francis?" Charles asked in a softer tone. "Please, tell me what's happening to you?" He reached out a hand toward me, but stalled mid motion as my glowing, blue eyes snapped open and met his.

"The name," I said in a raspy-sounding, near-growl. "Is Onslaught." Charles had just enough time to throw up an arm to shield himself before I transitioned fully, this time letting loose the full concussive force that I was capable of. Marie screamed and shrank away, Logan grabbed her and used himself to shield her from damage as the outer layer of the mansion walls were blasted apart. Charles slid back, a bright white half sphere appearing in front of him as he fended off the attack with his telekinesis. I returned to my solid state and landed lightly on my feet as he stumbled onto one knee several meters away.

"I told you not to get in the way." I informed him emotionlessly, then strolled over and stole Logan's truck. Driving off at top speed before any of the others might think to try something.

* * *

**A/N:** Yeah I'm not 100% about this one, I've been busy lately, thus the lag between chapters and then I had to fight through some mad writer's block to get this finished, Hopefully it's still enjoyable. Anyway, thanks for reading this, and special thanks to 07 NIGHT for reviewing. As always I'd love to hear what y'all think.


	25. Your Friendly Neighborhood Eldritch Abom

**Chapter 25: Your Friendly Neighborhood Eldritch Abomination**

"What the hell is _she_ doing here?" Colonel Stryker snapped when he saw Moira walk past the little window in the drab green door of the interrogation room.

"That's hardly your concern, Colonel." Agent Mathews covered smoothly. He had no idea what she was here for either, but letting it show would be a rookie mistake. He was well beyond that. "I suggest that you answer the question."

"She's on medical leave." Colonel Stryker recalled. Agent Mathews continued to watch him impassively.

"You seem very concerned with CIA matters." He observed.

"You know that I've been read in on the mutant problem, Agent. You were there!" Stryker snapped.

Mathews took a deep breath and continued, still refusing to justify Stryker's objections with a direct or informative response. The Colonel was a suspect right now, and that's how Mathews was going to treat him.

"Agent MacTaggart." Johnson greeted as she joined him and Captain Kinkaid behind the two-way mirror, giving no outward indication that he was at all surprised to see her there.

"Do we have anything yet?" She asked, coming to stand beside him and observe Mathews' progress.

"Not much. He's got no alibi for the time of the break in, but we don't know what motive he would have to do this either." Johnson informed her wearily. "He isn't giving us anything."

Moira smiled humorlessly.

"Missing Peter, Sir?"

"Like you wouldn't believe." Johnson confirmed "We could really use him right about now." He glanced warily over his shoulder at Captain Kinkaid, then added more quietly. "Any way you could get a line out to him? Off the record."

Moira faltered for a second, surprised by her superior's behavior and his apparent knowledge of their unsanctioned activity. Then again, he wasn't asking her to tell him what it was, and she knew how much her partner trusted him, and vice-versa.

"I'll see what I can do." She replied in a neutral tone. "But you should know that I wasn't aware that he was MIA until this afternoon."

Johnson nodded, returning his attention to the interrogation.

Moira looked down at her hands, gathering up her resolve before she added deceptively smoothly "You also might be interested to know that he was looking into Stryker before we lost contact. He hadn't yet shared the intel. with me, but he did mention that Stryker was up to something mutant-related."

Johnson narrowed his eyes at the new angle she'd presented him and looked over at her thoughtfully.

"If you'll excuse me, Sir. It's time for my next dosage." Moira stated and headed out of the room. Johnson considered his options for a moment, then nodded to Kinkaid.

"Stay on her." He ordered simply, turning back to the window. Kinkaid barely hesitated.

"Yes, Sir." He acknowledged and left the older agent to his thoughts.

* * *

"That man you saw _was_ the message." Charles considered aloud from his seat beside Raven on the living room couch, as Erik paced back and forth behind them.

"That's what he said." Cain rumbled, watching Erik warily from where he stood at the right arm of Raven and Charles' couch. It had not escaped him that the magnekinetic had been orbiting his stepbrother like a satellite ever since my little outburst, and he didn't like it one bit.

"It doesn't make a whole lot of sense." Alex said frowning, and secretly wondering how long it would be before one of the two alpha-males in the room lost it and turned on the other. He was betting that it would be Erik. Considering their situation, it was a pretty safe bet.

"He's probably someone that Francis knew in the other timeline." Charles guessed. "Perhaps Marie can make some sense of it when she and Logan return from the lab."

"That might take a while." Alex remarked, wincing as he remembered the carnage that my transition had made out of Logan's back and the massive wound it'd left on the side of his head. It was only Logan's indestructible adamantium skeleton that had stopped him from sustaining brain and organ damage, not that it actually would've mattered. Raven hugged herself and leaned a little closer to Charles. She shuddered to think what might've happened to her adoptive brother if he hadn't been able to shield himself with his telekinesis so quickly.

"Logan should be fully recovered in a day or two, according to Hank." Charles relayed. Then he stilled, his eyes going out of focus for a beat. "Oh. Marie's on her way." He added, somewhat surprised by her promptness.

"She is? And there she is." Raven said as Marie appeared in the doorway behind Cain, looking drained and sullen. There was red-stained, gauze bandage taped over the right side of her throat where the blast had damaged her skin. Ooops.

"Hey, Mom." She greeted, waving halfheartedly with a bandaged hand. Then she turned her attention to Erik as she entered. "You mentioned a message?"

Cain cleared his throat and turned to address her. "It was a man."

"The green man?" Marie inferred. "Jubilee said somethin' about findin' him in her closet."

"Yes, that's the one."

"Describe 'im."

"He was too big for the closet." Cain remembered. "About my height, but a slighter build, dark hair, literally white skin, sounded English."

"He had a scepter." Erik put in, perhaps a tad bothered by Cain's usurping his part in the conversation. "He was also rude, self important, and overly-amused by our reactions. He mentioned April 11th before disappearing. It seemed to mean something to Francis."

"Loki." Marie determined, frowning down at the rug at her feet as she mulled it over "April 11th was around the first time he arrived on Earth. It's a reference to the Chitauri invasion."

"The Chi-what-ee?" Cain murmured. Raven rolled her eyes.

"Loki?" Darwin questioned from the doorway, where he'd been hovering more or less unnoticed until that moment "Like the Norse god?"  
"Exactly." Marie agreed distractedly. "Why would he… Wait. You said that he disappeared. How?"

"The air sort of…" Cain gestured vaguely. "Flickered and he was just gone."

"Golden green?" Marie said, squinting at him. He and Erik exchanged a bemused look.

"No, red." Erik corrected. Marie smiled.

"She's back."

"Who?" Raven asked, frowning. Charles paused for a moment, watching Marie's face as she looked up at Erik and her smile grew, then Charles' face lit with recognition.

"Wanda's escaped!" He realized, then frowned again. "But why would she want…"

"She wouldn't betray us." Marie affirmed, looking annoyed by her own thoughts. "She was never completely on our side, but she was always more of an ally than anythin' else. _Francis_ on the other hand…" She trailed off with a shrug. "Depends if it suits 'im."

"She would know that." Charles pointed out. "Why relay the message through him?"

"She needed to code the message in a way that Farouk an' Sinister wouldn't pick up on, right? So she used references to the twins' time workin' with the Avengers."

"What are the Avengers?" Cain asked impatiently.

"Exactly." Marie said, gesturing to him as she continued to lock gazes with Charles. "The only people who could've recognized the reference were Francis, Pietro, or Me… Maybe you if Francis ever bothered to play fair. So what does it mean…"

"She's escaped. She'll be trying to find a way to join back up with us." Erik offered walking over to stand at Marie's side.

"Okay… Loki, the Chitauri invasion… Manhattan." She deduced.

"That's pretty vague." Cain remarked, earning another reproachful glare from Erik.

"I wasn't an Avenger. If you want specifics you'd have to ask the twins… Or Francis, I guess." Marie admitted. "They used to hang out at Stark Tower, but seein' as it won't be built for over a decade; I'm guessin' that's missin' the point."

"We need somewhere to start, and that's as good as anything." Charles stated decisively, grabbing his cane and readying to leave. "I have a feeling it would be best to locate them before Francis does."

* * *

A little bell tinkled merrily, breaking the silence in the dark but cozy little bookshop, announcing Wanda's arrival. A petite, Asian girl with a burgundy and brown patterned headscarf partially concealing her young face, stepped out of the back room. Clever hazel eyes flickered fleetingly over Wanda before she settled into her chair and opened a battered old paperback.

"Xi'an—" Wanda began coming to lean against the other side of the counter, beside the register.

"I don't know you." The teenager replied without looking up.

"Well, _you_ don't know _me_." Wanda agreeed, "We actually used to be on relatively good terms… in another life." Wanda smiled, tight and closed-lipped, as the other mutant's gaze met hers again, trying for friendly and trustworthy.

"You want a book, Agent Maximoff, or will you be on your way now?" She asked, her French accent getting almost unnoticeably heavier.

"You've been watching me."

"Ever since you re-entered the city."

"Yet another anomaly." Wanda observed, unfazed. "You're not supposed to be able to do that yet."

"I'm also here ahead of schedule, right? Terrific. Don't care. I can't help you."

"I can buy a book if it makes you feel better, but I really do need a tiny, little favor." Wanda persisted apologetically.

"Out."

"Karma…" Wanda began, then hastened after the girl as she strode out from behind the counter, heading towards the front entrance. "Karma! Wait. Just hear me out, okay? I wouldn't be here without a very good reason. It's perfectly safe. I swear!"

"You say that now, Maximoff, but we both know that's not entirely true." Karma disagreed, sounding far beyond her fourteen years of age. She pulled the door open to usher the unwanted Avenger out of her uncle's shop but Wanda pushed the door shut.

"Tell me what you know."

Karma scoffed, averting her eyes.

Wanda continued to stare intently down at her. "This is important. You know that. They've already gotten to you. I can see that and I'm sorry. We are doing everything we can to make this right." She eyed the headscarf meaningfully. "You know you can't hide forever."

Karma fidgeted uncomfortably.

"Help me."

Karma let out a heavy sigh and looked up. "Death."

Wanda frowned, uncertain of what exactly that meant but doubting she was going to like it. She'd sort of come here hoping to find them a way out.

"You can pull it off, but they'll both have to die."

Wanda stilled, running through all the possible scenarios in her head at lightning speed as she carefully schooled her expression. "I'm listening."

* * *

Marie and Cain turned into a dingy looking alley and took shelter under the somewhat underwhelming green awning so they could look at their map once again.

"This is not working." Cain grumbled.

"And that is not helpin' at all either." Marie remarked, studying their section thoughtfully.

"I hope Erik and Darwin are having better luck than we are."

"Better."

"We have been searching for four hours and so far no one has seen anything at this point someone should be getting lucky."

Marie looked up at him.

"What?"

"Nothin'. Look, Stark Tower was like the tallest structure in Manhattan. It aint much but maybe…"

"Good enough. Come on. I know where we should look."

"You think…"

"Not the Empire State Building."

Marie stopped at the mouth of the alley.

"It's not tactically appropriate." Cain explained, then noticed her incredulous expression. "Trust me; I know about this stuff."

"Where, then?"

"There's a construction site we passed an hour ago. It's fairly close to finished."

"The new sky scraper." Marie drawled blandly. "Fuck. That building does sorta fit the bill."

Cain pulled up the collar of his drab grey jacket to protect his neck from the chill wind that had picked up. "In a bad way?"

"Not great." Marie confirmed, shoving her gloved hands into the pockets of her coat. "Damn, I miss cell phones." She muttered to herself. This whole situation was filling her with a strong sense of impending doom.

* * *

I stepped out of the stairwell on the thirteenth floor and strolled down the windy, colorless halls, passing the first two doorless doorways until I reached the one letting in light from the outside. Ah, perfect. This room still lacked an outer wall, leaving one side of the room exposed to the city below. I checked the wristwatch that I'd nicked from Erik's room. Then I strolled over to sit against the far wall with one leg dangling out over the edge, casually tearing down one of the sheets of hanging plastic that covered the gap and let it fall. I had some time to enjoy the view of the city, which was nice. Besides, this way if I was lucky, I might be able to see them coming. The wind whistled around me as I watched the sunset, and I held out my hand to check how I was faring in the chilly weather. My hands were pale and blotchy-looking, decidedly purplish at the fingertips. I should have grabbed my coat and gloves. I couldn't help thinking that Pete would probably get all cross when he saw me before forcibly pushing the thought aside.

It was better to focus on the goals ahead of me, the moves I had to make. Anything else was a distraction. I went into a light, meditative state while I waited, leaving my mind open in order to recognize the arrival of any familiar minds close by. Pietro was the first to arrive. Typical. I chose not to outwardly acknowledge his presence until he had already walked up beside me.

"Where's your coat?" He inquired.

I knew it. He paused, waiting for an answer, I could hear the frown in his voice when he tried again. "Fluke?"

I opened my eyes and looked up at him.

"Good. Didn't think you were really asleep." He remarked, turning to look out at the sunset. "Quite the view." Quicksilver turned his impassive face down to regard me again. "I see why you chose it." He was wearing his spy face, the mask he wore on his covert missions. I locked eyes with him, my face a blank slate.

"It's so good we understand each other." I returned, rising to my feet as Wanda came down the hallway towards us. I looked out to the rooftop across from us as Erik and Darwin jogged out onto it, having caught sight of us.

"Looks like Vater's caught up." Pietro noted, sounding as carefree as always. I checked my watch again as Wanda joined us, remaining by the doorway. Well, of course she would.

"You've betrayed us." She stated with the slightest hint of venom, right before Apocalypse popped into existence beside me. The Shadow King's speedster blurred into the doorway behind her and she whirled round to face him.

"You know me." I said with a shrug. Wanda moved to grab something out of her pocket. I shook my head at the speedster and he grabbed her arms and spun her, pinning her against the wall with her hands secured behind her back.

"Wanda!" Pietro exclaimed and started forward, but I reached out my left hand and transitioned it, blasting him backwards through the wall. He scrambled to his feet coughing and sputtering. He scowled and spit a mouthful of blood in my general direction, looking both injured and furious.

"Francis! NO!" I heard Vater shouting. There was more, but I tuned him out. Apocalypse vanished from his place behind my right shoulder and I chose not to dwell on why.

"You're making a mistake." Pietro ground out, stumbling forward to lean on the destroyed wall.

"Pete, don't! If you're going to—" Wanda began to instruct him, but the merc knocked her out.

"You could join me." I offered, knowing exactly what my obstinate older brother was going to say.

"I'd rather take my chances." Pietro responded, then rushed forward and swung me down hard into the floor behind him. He immediately turned to drag me back up by my collar.

The other speedster began to step towards us. I could feel Marie getting uncomfortably close to his position.

"Don't interfere." I ordered, as I kneed Pietro hard in his injured ribs and he fell back, wheezing. So I grabbed his shoulder and kneed him in the face for good measure, pausing to glance over at the other speedster as he and Marie began to fight. Pietro grabbed me by the shirtfront and threw me back, standing up straighter and wiping more blood away from his mouth. I rolled to my feet and charged forward to punch him. Pietro decided to be an ass about it, grabbed my head and held me out at arms length, which is so unfair.

"Thank God you're short." He gasped out with a lopsided smile, still obviously out of breath, a strange thing for him. I made a manly, irritated sound and he …well, I think it was a chuckle it was difficult to be sure.

"Vater is bound to be furious." Pietro continued, grabbing my arms when I tried to force my way out of his hold, and spinning me around so he could pin both to my chest and trap me against the wall behind him. "Apocalypse won't kill him. You know that. We will stop you."

Instead of letting him trap me, I ran up the wall and used his own grip to spin him away towards the opening. He almost fell but caught his balance at the last minute, ripping off another section of hanging plastic in the process.

"Then I suppose it's a shame that you don't carry a gun." I reflected aloud.

Pietro's eyes widened. "Francis! _Fratellino,_ please don't!"

I jumped into a spin and kicked him out through the gap.

"NOOO!" Marie screamed. There was a moment of complete silence, broken only by the deafening click of the safety on her gun being released. She was aiming straight at my chest, but the mercenary hurled her away through the broken wall before she could shoot me.

I barely registered it. I didn't hear any of the others react. I didn't wait long enough for that. I just turned and ran away into the hallway with a moderately disturbed speedster following close behind me, carrying my remaining sibling on his shoulders.

* * *

**A/N:** Yeah, I know: that ending was horrible. That's part of the reason it took me so long to post this. I had to get the next part started before I could put this up. It does get better IMHO, and I'll probably be able to post the next chapter sooner because of that(fingers crossed). Anyway, thanks for reading this, special thanks to icefox94 for taking the time to review.


	26. The Narrator Is Lying To You

**Chapter 26: The Narrator Is Lying to You**

Erik, Arawn, and Darwin all froze at the sound of Marie's horrified scream and turned as one to look. A flailing, gray and brown form fell from the opening in our building across the street. Erik's eyes widened in shock and he instantly reached out the hand that he'd been about to punch Arawn's face with, trying to latch onto the metal on Peter's person. He needed to halt the deadly fall, but there was nothing for him to grab onto.

"No, no, no." He murmured under his breath, and flinched at the sound of an impact down below, absently releasing his grip on Arawn's throat. There was a brief, awed silence as the smaller mutant walked over to the edge of the roof and looked down to see Peter's sightlessly-staring corpse lying atop the crumpled, red car below.

"Well… I didn't see _that_ coming." Arawn noted, ignoring Darwin's muted but heartfelt insult to his humanity. He did, however, back up a step or two when the metal vent-shaft beside him began to shake ominously, to be joined by more and more metal objects around them in a rapidly expanding radius.

"Uh… Erik?" Darwin questioned with an understandable note of anxiety in his voice. The five and a half foot tall vent-shaft crumpled up, flattened by the force of Erik's unrestrained rage. Arawn ducked a flying piece of pipe that yanked itself out of the floor to his left and sailed away over Erik's shoulder with enough speed to kill. Arawn was about to say something on the matter when he caught sight of Marie's impromptu voyage through the broken wall, and shifted focus once again.

"Oh, dear. I believe that's my cue to exit." He thought aloud before folding out of existence to reappear at the entrance to the building opposite.

"Shit. I'm not sure if that's better or worse." Darwin said nervously. "Erik? Listen, I know this is terrible, but _please_, just stop and think before someone else gets killed…" He cast about in his mind for something he could use to bring the more volatile man back under control. "Wait, think about it—What would the Professor say if he could see this?"

"Charles isn't here." Erik growled. In the back of his mind, Erik was very thankful for that fact. He deserved better.

* * *

I hurried down the still-somewhat-rudimentary staircase with the speedster-mercenary carrying my sister on his shoulders just a few paces behind me. There were subtle vibrations beginning to run through the sturdy iron supports, but between my running internal dialogue and my inborn insensitivity, I didn't notice.

"Hey! Wait." The mercenary snapped with enough force in his voice that I actually did so without question. "Do you hear that?"

I turned to look up at him and I listened. There was a low, resonant hum from the supports below us. "He wouldn't…" I denied, then looked down at my right wrist. Erik's watch was visibly trembling. There was a resounding groan that echoed through the stairwell, and a series of cracks began to spread through the wall beside us, quickly forming into an intricate web. "Run." I ordered.

"I can't take you both, kid."

"I know. Take her out of here, NOW!" I shouted, just as the railing ripped away from the level above us and whipped out into the wall, continuing down towards us. The merc. hesitated for a split second before swallowing and blurring away out of sight. _**~You're really going to do it, are you?~**_ I challenged my father mentally as I did my best to outrun the descending destruction he was hurling after me. _**~You're going to murder your own son.~**_

There was a formless cry from his mind and the stairs broke apart under my feet. I managed to transition through the most deadly pieces of rubble as I fell. Luckily, by the time I'd reached the end of my fall, Erik had gotten a hold of himself once more and the building ceased to attack me.

"Thank you." I acknowledged, trying to regain my cool exterior. "As I'd predicted, at least my own parents aren't interested in seeing me dead." I straightened out my collar, remembering. "Although, my cousin _did_ just try to shoot me." That was going to bother me for the next few days.

* * *

Back at the mansion, Raven and Alex looked up at the sound of a knock on the newly-repaired front door. Then they both turned to look askance at Cecily, who'd been lounging on the window-seat, reading. Raven slid the book she'd been considering back into its place on the bookshelf and descended the ladder as Cecily looked out the window to identify the caller.

"It's a man in a black trenchcoat. He looks kinda normal, well, the rich kind of normal-" Cecily's breath caught in her throat when the man turned to look in her direction. "His eyes!"

"It's him." Alex concluded darkly.

"Okay, that's okay. We'll stick to the plan." Raven assured the others, sounding calm and determined and not at all terrified. "Cecily, you grab Jubilee and head to Hank's lab. Alex?"

"Yeah, I get it. Let's get this over with." He grumbled, getting up and leaving the room. Raven watched the others go, taking a deep, calming breath as her azure scales rippled all over her faintly trembling form.

At the door, Alex waited for a moment to be certain that Cecily and the Child were safely out of the way before answering the door with false nonchalance.

"Mr. Farouk." He greeted with a cold smile. "What do you want?"

"Charming. But then, I doubt they spend much time teaching proper decorum in prison." Farouk returned smoothly. "I'm here to see your Professor."

Alex narrowed his eyes, not stepping aside. "You set this up."

The Shadow King smirked at him. "You already knew that. Let's not waste time shall we, Son? Procrastination isn't going to tip the scales, and I have got places to be."

With an icy glare Alex relented and let the enemy telepath enter.

"Thank you."

"He's in the library." Alex explained, leading their unwanted guest to the correct door, knowing full well that the older…man could probably map out the entire place from memory. Farouk just gave him an amused nod and brushed past, pausing by the doorway to survey the younger mutant sitting patiently in wait for him by the fireplace. Farouk chuckled, waiting a beat until Charles' vivid, blue eyes met his.

"Here we are again." The Shadow King remarked, walking over to stand beside Charles' chair and rest a hand on the back.

Alex tensed, stepping closer in silent warning at the sight, his chest was beginning to glow fiery-red. "Professor?"

"Don't intervene."

Alex obviously didn't agree with that instruction, but obeyed nonetheless. The Shadow King sauntered over and closed the door in the teen's face, continuing their interrupted conversation as he reclaimed his previous position. "It's still just like the first time we met, all those years ago. You kids haven't changed a bit."

"I would ask you what you meant by that, but I don't particularly care." The younger mutant replied. The Shadow King scoffed, slipping into the other chair and moved one of the chess pieces on the table between them just to bother his host.

"You're still trying so hard to protect him, even after all these years." He elaborated, a tad disappointed by the lack of reaction. "Really, Sweetie, you had to know that I'd be able to tell. Your particular brand of subterfuge doesn't work on people like me."

Raven shot him a challenging look and her blue scales rippled once as if to spite him, although she remained in her adoptive brother's guise. "I knew you'd blabber on about it. It never hurts to waste a little more of your time when I can."

"Touché." The Shadow King obliged her with a tilt of his head. "And where has your dear brother run off to?"

"Cain's somewhere in Manhattan…"

Farouk looked unamused by her response.

"I can't account for Charles." Raven continued airily.

"You don't want to challenge me. I can make your life very unpleasant and I've got power that you can't even begin to match."

Raven leaned forward over the table, returning to her true form. "Maybe I know something that you don't."

"I highly doubt that." The Shadow King dismissed with utter certainty.

Instead of being intimidated, Raven slid back into her seat to lounge almost lazily in her brother's favorite chair.

She let her gaze wander over his shoulder, seeming to consider his point. Then she blinked up at the Shadow King with outwardly-sincere innocence before scrunching her face up into a curious frown. "If that's so obviously the case, then why are you still here?"

The Shadow King opened his mouth to rebuke the girl for her _hubris_- thinking that she could ever take on such a greater being, but faltered at the strange feeling drifting in through the back of his head. He felt… numb, restricted, as if his host were no longer responding to his consciousness. He began to tip forward in his seat and attempted to flee his current body only to find that he couldn't. A pair of dainty, silver-white hands caught him from behind and pushed him back into his seat. When the darkness engulfed his vision, the last thing that Amahl Farouk saw was Raven's smile as she placed her brother's bishop back into its correct placement on the board. His last conscious thought, was of _hubris_.

* * *

I remained completely silent and blank as I made my way into Apocalypse's 'safe house' to meet with the others. It was actually one that I recognized from my own past, the empty warehouse where Marie and I had hidden out for a month and a half before we jumped timelines. It was a lot newer, not so run down and forsaken. Nor was it rotting anywhere yet but it otherwise didn't seem to have changed much in the intervening decades. Then again, if he'd owned it for all that time… Arawn looked up from his contemplation of my unconscious sister when I entered the room.

"She still hasn't woken?" I asked, ignoring his searching gaze.

"Not that I've noticed." He confirmed, still studying my face. "And how are you feeling?"

"I fail to see the relevance." I evaded in monotone. "Where's Farouk?"

"Hmm... It seems he's still out on his 'personal errand'. Are you sure you're really looking forward to him reclaiming your sister?" Arawn asked with a subtle frown.

"Feeling sentimental, Apocalypse? That isn't like you." I retorted and he arched his eyebrows at me.

"And is this _you_?" He countered almost gently, his copper-red eyes boring into mine until the mercenary strolled in and plopped down on the couch across from us with a bag of potato chips, breaking the mood.

"Deadpool." Arawn said sternly.

"What? I was hungry!" The mercenary, 'Deadpool' apparently, defended. Arawn sighed and exchanged a less confrontational look with me.

"I hate these people." He muttered. I almost smiled.

* * *

Marie began to push herself up off of the floor, then whipped her head around when someone stepped through the Pietro-shaped hole to join her.

"Whoa, whoa! Easy there. It's just me." Cain told her before crouching down beside her.

"Where the hell were you!?" Marie demanded angrily. "I thought you had my back! Then we find Francis an' what d'you know? Cain's just disappeared into thin fuckin' air right when we really need 'im!"

"Yeah, I know. I'm sorry about that. I just had a bit of a weird experience back there and—"

"You are _not_ talkin' your way outta this with some bullshit story!" Marie shouted frantically as the tears started to roll down her cheeks all over again. "I just watched my friend die! Magneto's totally lost it, an' Francis is officially evil again, an' he an' Apocalypse have Wanda, which means the _Shadow King_ has Wanda—An' we've probably lost Erik for good now! Which means that I failed an' we're all totally screwed!"

"Okay, slow down. Just breathe…" Cain tried, grabbing hold of Marie's shaking shoulders.

"It's not okay! Don't you get it? It's over! He killed him! He just killed him! His own brother, an' I just stood there!" Marie continued to ramble. "I couldn't stop it? I couldn'"

They both jumped at a muted thud from the adjacent room. For a brief moment the only sound was of Marie quietly hyperventilating, then Cain whispered.

"Damn it. Okay, you stay and..." He grabbed her gun off the floor, heading toward the hole in the wall. "And, I'm going to go check that out."

Marie sat there tensely, trying to force her breathing back to normal. There was a wordless shout from the other room that caused her to jump again, then gunshots. Her hands flew up over her ears and she curled up in a protective huddle, staring at the opening. Another shout. A crash. One more gunshot, and then an even louder, extended crash followed by absolute silence. Marie's mind raced as she heard unfamiliar footsteps creeping towards her. In her elevated state she thought that she could hear movement from all the way out in the hall, but she couldn't be sure. A gloved hand appeared holding her gun and one of the human hands of the Shadow King stepped in through the gap to shoot her.

"Any last words?" The hooded arsehole inquired.

"There's somethin'…" Marie rasped. Her voice faded out before she could finish.

"Sorry, what was that?" The man mocked.

"There's s-somethin' you should know 'bout me."

The man sneered, only to still at the vibrations running through the gun in his hand. The metal objects around him began to move erratically.

"I get upset." Marie half sobbed. The human foolishly tried to shoot her as objects began to fly around the room and the bullet ricocheted off of nothing to embed itself right between his eyes. "Sorry." Marie squeaked, and covered her head with her arms, waiting out the storm.

When Erik finally arrived, stepping over Cain's unconscious form on the floor without the slightest concern, half the metal in the room was still orbiting around Marie like satellites.

"Rogue?" Erik questioned, walking over to the hole in the wall.

Marie let out small sound of complaint in reply. Erik hesitated, then made his way over to her, effortlessly deflecting or ducking any objects she unintentionally flung his way.

"Are you injured?"

She gave another muffled reply.

"What was that?" He persisted.

"Yes."

Erik crouched down in front of her.

"Where?" He asked even as he grabbed her limp arms and began to just check her over himself.

"Ow…"

"You've got a couple of cracked ribs." Erik appraised, holding her swollen left hand up to inspect it and pulling her glove off.

"OW!"

"It's broken."

"No kiddin'." Marie snarked. The objects around them all dropped to the floor.

"Better." Erik observed, pulling her to her feet. She let out a huff, following by his side and winced when he once again stepped uncaringly over Cain. The aforementioned mutant rolled onto his back with a groan.

"Just so you know," Marie told Erik as they passed the missing outer wall. "I might be in shock, but I ain't that stupid."

"Sorry?" Erik inquired, turning to regard her interestedly.

"Erik wouldn't say that."

Erik looked down at her, raising an eyebrow at the strange comment.

"Playin' innocent?"

"I believe that you may have a concussion." Erik returned, stopping their progression in the center of the room.

"What's my name?" Marie challenged. Erik sighed in annoyance, looking like he was going to argue. "My real name. You _do_ know it, right? What is it?"

Cain blinked awake, he was still out of it, but it was comforting nonetheless. He stared up at Erik, as if the sight of him was confusing.

Erik stared Marie down then sucked in a harsh breath and snapped.

"Enough of this. Anna-Marie Darkholme, come with me now, before—" Marie cut him off by socking him in the jaw with her good hand. He glared up at her from the floor, wiping the blood away from his mouth.

"Wrong name." Marie informed the imposter.

"Tough luck." The imposter conceded and the air around her rippled and shined until she was almost completely masked from view. Marie tensed, looking around for any sign of a threat, then the air was knocked out of her by the larger woman's tackle.

"Marie!" Cain shouted diving forward, to grab her attacker in mid lunge and yank her away.

"How?" Marie gasped rolling to her feet.

"I don't think she can fool both of us at on—Where'd she go?"

"Crap!" Marie shouted and picked up a fallen bar to swing it at their opponent. She got her in the side, but the disappearing mutant fell into a somersault and kicked her back towards the gap.

"No!" Cain cried out, moving to grab her, but the phantom tackled him before he could reach out to her. Marie skidded over the floor, her hands scrambling for purchase as she slid out into the open air.

There was moment of fleeting hope as she fell past the tenth floor when she caught sight of Erik rushing up the nearby staircase. He hadn't seen her though— far too focused on whoever that was he was chasing- and her heart plunged into her stomach.

"I'm gonna die." She realized aloud. "Wait a minute…" She could swear that her descent was slowing down. "I _am _falling to my death… right?" She found herself asking in a hopeful sort of confusion. A pair of strong arms reached out of the window beside her and wrapped around her waist, accompanied by an achingly familiar baritone.

"Not really." Her savior told her, sounding amiable as always, and pulled her into to the safety of the seventh floor.

* * *

**A/N:** Yeah, so... sorry about the apparent lack of Charles here. I originally had a Charles&Erik storyline running in this chapter too, but there was just too much going on at once and I felt I had to transplant almost all of that plotline to the next chapter to really do it justice. But hey, Raven gets a moment of baddass, so there's that. Anyway, thanks for reading guys. Please review


	27. Everybody Lies

**Chapter 27: Everybody Lies**

Karma glanced up from her copy of 'The Once and Future King' at the familiar ring of another patron entering her parents' bookshop. She waited, muscles tensed, ready to make a run for it until she got a clear view of the short, slight, young gentlemen with a cane who'd just turned to meet her gaze.

"The Professor, I take it." She observed, relaxing as she took in his pleasant demeanor and the presumably anachronistic apparel that was just a bit too long for him. It was a detail that only added to the overall comforting aura surrounding him.

Charles smiled and nodded, coming forward to offer her his hand.

"Charles Xavier, please call me Charles." He stated warmly.

"Xi'an, but you already know that." Xi'an replied, accepting the handshake. She returned it with a faint smile of her own as Charles let his hand fall back to his side, to be immediately engulfed by the leathery vinyl of his blue-black militaristic jacket.

"Well. Yes, but…" Charles began, trailing off when Xi'an just got up off of her stool and headed into the back room.

"You're supposed to follow me." She called, without looking back at him as she ducked through the hanging wooden beads and disappeared from view.

"Right." Charles muttered and followed after her. The storeroom was packed with dusty old boxes of books and walled with carefully ordered rows of collector's editions. The naked bulb that lit the room was swinging gently back and forth, causing the shadows around them to sway rhythmically. Charles guessed that the girl must have brushed it on her way past. "Are you certain that you still want to do this?" He inquired, feeling uncomfortable about involving such a young girl in their already desperate and perilous venture. Xi'an turned and sent him a surprisingly stern look.

"It's a little late for that, Professor Charles."

"Xi'an-" He faltered, then soldiered on more hastily. "I'm still asking."

"I don't want to, but I will." Xi'an responded, pulling off her headscarf and draping it carefully over a nearby stack of first editions. Charles narrowed his eyes. Xi'an sighed and turned back to face him as she pulled on her worn, green jacket. "From what I can tell, this is the path to take…" There was a brief pause while the two psionic mutants appraised each other. "We're going now." Xi'an prompted, but then stopped short halfway to the front door of the shop. "Wait."

Charles halted in the doorway and reached out without even looking to catch the item she'd thrown to him. He regarded the sizeable bottle of deep-red calligraphy ink then raised an eyebrow at her as she met him in the doorway.

"You're going to need it." Was her casual explanation, as she pushed past. "Come on, we don't have much time."

* * *

Marie and Cain jogged side by side down the street toward the construction site in search of any sign of myself or the others in their search party.

"Where are they? This is pretty close to the rendezvous point. You'd think we'd have spotted someone by now—" Cain said. Marie skidded to a halt and grabbed his arm.

"Shut up." She cut in, pointing up at the missing wall on the 13th floor of the half constructed skyscraper before them.

"We've got him." Cain muttered as he spotted me lounging on the edge in the far right corner. Marie broke into a sprint, darting in through the front door that I'd obviously left open for them. Cain chased after her, but slowed to a more cautious pace as he noticed it. All his years of running from the Shadow King and the like had only served to make him even more distrustful than his original gruff disposition.

"Mar—Damnit!" He swore when she vanished up a staircase before he could stop her. "This _so_ feels like a setup." Cain growled, smacking a crack into the left side of the doorframe and then backing up to frown at the 13th floor, running a hand over his face. He considered the doorway. "You don't wanna go in there. Don't go in there." He said to himself, remembering Marie, his sort-of-almost-niece shooting up the stairs ahead of him. "You don't _have_ to go into the trap. Oh, fuck it." He swore and stomped into the building.

_**You still talk to yourself when you're upset.**_ An entirely unexpected, accented voice observed inside his mind.

Cain stilled at the bottom of the stairs, frowning in confusion. It wasn't exactly the first time he'd heard his stepbrother's voice remarking to him in his head over the past few years. It _was_ the first time that the words were accompanied with that telltale impression of clacking chess pieces and tentatively-curious, blue puppy-dog eyes.

"Charlie?" Cain blurted out, his gaze darting around the darkened room in confusion. As expected, there was no tangible sign of the younger mutant's presence. "We left you in Westchester. Right?"

_**Then you must still be talking to yourself.**_ Charles' telepathic impression returned, accompanied by a rush of playful amusement.

"Cute." Cain spat and continued up the stairs, deciding to ignore the phantom for now, because it had better be a phantom. If it wasn't, he was going to tear the little nerd a new one when they met back up.

_**There's no need to be hostile. I'm just checking in with you.**_ Charles projected. _**I'm going to need you later. Nothing is what it seems. Try to keep that in mind… Please don't tell anyone yet.**_

Cain allowed his annoyance to seep through the link as he checked the lifts. They were in use, so he continued up the next flight of stairs.

_**I know it's cryptic. It's meant to be so—Oh, you'll figure it out.**_ And with that, the inexplicable feeling of Charles vanished.

_He'd __**better**__ be in Westchester._ Cain thought to himself angrily, he did not need to deal with that concern on top of everything else. He reached the unpainted door on the next landing and checked the lifts again, deciding to take solace in the fact that at least now he wouldn't have to take the stairs. When he was about halfway up, he heard a huge crash and the elevator faltered. There was a spike of formless shock and a spark of indignance that once again had a distinctive hint of Charles accompanying it, and the lift continued upwards at a far slower pace. Something big was happening. He just hoped that no one he was responsible for died.

* * *

Charles waited for Cain to ascend to a more comfortable distance, and then slipped hastily into the darkened first floor with Xi'an soundlessly shadowing his movements.

"You need to be by a window for what comes next."

"What comes next?" Charles asked suspiciously.

"Can't tell you."

Charles crossed his arms over his chest, gracing her with a disapproving expression. Xi'an winced.

"Wanda and I have already argued over it." She defended, beginning to ascend the stairs towards her assigned position on the fourth floor. "Apparently, 'knowing is problematic.' So, we just follow the pattern and react as events unfold." She called down to him.

_**Where are you going? **_Charles projected to her, feeling her getting farther and farther away.

_Fourth floor, lifts. Trust me, Charles. You'll know it when you see it. Just have the bat ready._

Charles let out a heavy sigh and took his place by the window, tearing away the thick, brown paper that blocked off its empty frame from the outside. Karma was right; Charles immediately knew what to do when Pietro's flailing form came plummeting down towards him. Charles strode out of his hiding place, pulling Karma's inkwell out of an inner pocket of his borrowed jacket, monitoring Pietro's descent with intense focus until he'd come level with the fourth floor. Then Charles caught him with his telekinesis and swiftly disappeared him into Karma's section of the building, flipping his cane around to bring the silver handle down on the top of the car (and the Ink) with extra force from his mutation. He then retreated back into his hiding place to put all his focus on indiscriminately broadcasting a suggestion of Pietro's expected demise.

It became more and more difficult for him to focus as Erik's rage and pain grew in a destructive wave around us. Charles wanted more than anything to reach out and comfort him, but knew that to contact any of the others now would be a fatal error, even if the deception was killing him inside. Finally, when the building began to deteriorate in full, Charles' concentration broke and he let go of the facade. Odds were, those who needed to be convinced of Pietro's passing had better things on their mind by now anyway, so he wasn't too worried about it. The hardest part of it so far had been not dropping his shields to let Erik know the truth, but Wanda and Xi'an had made it clear that wasn't an option yet. He had to be a phantom.

Charles dodged a few collapsing bars and bits of plumbing, making his way toward the center of the entryway to look up at the staircase above. He could feel us getting closer, feel the speedster's panic, and then my surprise and disbelief. It took him a second to work out why.

"He wouldn't." Charles murmured, realizing that not only was I the one who'd thrown my brother out the window, but I was also Erik's current target. "Erik…" He then gasped and hurried to mask himself from Deadpool's awareness as the speedster whizzed by. Charles spun to stare after him for a moment, then blanched as the staircase above more or less disintegrated, sending me plummeting towards my death. "Damn it, Erik!" Charles exclaimed, darting into the relative safety of the doorway and just managing to catch me scant feet before I splattered over the freshly tiled floor. Charles gently set me down on my hands and knees making sure I wasn't hit by more falling debris in the process. He only really remembered to breathe again once the last of the wreckage had gone still and I had turned to address him.

"Thank you." I acknowledged, attempting to brush the plaster off of my now ruined clothing. Charles just nodded, not quite ready for words yet, so I continued. "As I'd predicted, at least my own parents aren't interested in seeing me dead." I straightened out my collar, remembering. "Although, my cousin _did_ just try to shoot me."

"Was that when you shoved your brother out of a window?" Charles accused roughly, looking somewhat distraught. I eyed him for a moment.

"Admit it: you weren't that surprised."

"Francis, you pushed your brother off of the thirteenth floor of a skyscraper." Charles began to scold me.

I tilted my head to one side as if I was thinking it over.

"He was going to tell on me."

"…And you're making jokes." Charles breathed, shaking his head in disbelief. I took a deep breath, rubbing the back of my neck. At least, my own parents aren't both interested in seeing me dead at the same time. I amended my earlier reflection.

"Listen, do you need a moment?"

Charles looked up from a random spot on the floor in front of him, breathing a bit too fast. That's great, Dad. -I noted internally- You've literally picked the worst moment to start having a panic attack.

"You have no concept…" Charles scolded.

"I only ask because Vater's about to come charging in here, and you didn't seem to've noticed." I informed him before transitioning and escaping through the far wall.

Charles sucked in a deep breath and forced himself into a run. He faltered when he reached the stairs. As difficult and downright painful as it was to try to run with his gammy leg, it would be far worse trouble tackling the stairs. Adding to the conundrum was the fact that Erik would most certainly recognize his cane.

"I'm not going to make it." He realized aloud, then going on pure instinct he chucked his cane to the far side of the room and began to drag himself as far up the broken remains of the staircase as he could manage. Halfway up, he dropped down to hide behind the cracked paneling of the banister, crouching right on the edge of the gap that had been created when the falling staircase above knocked out the next section of this lower flight. Before his injury he could easily have leapt across, now he wasn't so sure.

"Francis!?" Erik called, storming into the entryway.

Charles squeezed his eyes shut. _This is beyond ridiculous. I'm hiding from my own partner now._ He thought to himself, drawing in his consciousness as far as he could manage.

"Francis?! Marie?" Erik called, sounding less angry and more curious. There was a shuffling sound from somewhere on the other end of the room and Erik strode over to check it out. Charles watched, then nearly jumped at Erik's burst of loud, multilingual swearing upon seeing me disappear into an expensive car with Arawn, streaking away into the flow of outgoing traffic. Charles took the opening provided by his distraction.

_**I've got a bit of a problem on my hands. I'm about to be discovered on the ground floor.**_ Charles projected to his coconspirators, sneaking a peek at Erik's silhouette in the open window.

_Who?_ Pietro responded shortly.

Erik turned his head, having caught sight of something glinting in the light from the window.

_**Your father.**_ Charles replied, then stalled, transfixed by the sight as Erik narrowed his eyes and held out his left hand in the now familiar gesture used when he was summoning… _**Trouble. **_Charles reported, watching the slender object fly obediently into Erik's grip. _**He's got my cane.**_ Erik wiped a bit of the ink off of the handle and rubbed it between his fingers.

"Charles." He muttered darkly, turning away from the window and closing his eyes in concentration. Charles quickly receded back into his own head once again, slamming up every barrier just in case. _This is bad. _Charles reflected._ Focus! I'm not wearing any metal. Just don't move. He can't possibly—_

"I know you're there." Erik called in the same cold, predatory tone that he used on opponents in combat. It was the first time that Charles had ever heard _his_ Erik use it on him and it sent a chill down his spine. "I can feel the iron in your veins." Erik continued, stalking closer to Charles' hiding place. _Brilliant._

Charles couldn't skim his thoughts, and he couldn't bend his perception to get out of this either, because Erik was far too familiar with his signature. He would know it was him from the very moment that Charles released his barriers. "You can't hide from me. Why not make this easier on both of us and come out from behind your rock." Erik coaxed, getting worryingly close. _That sounded like a challenge._ Said a little voice in Charles' head that bore a striking resemblance to Raven's, and suddenly it was enough. He was good at hiding. He always had been, and so had Raven. _When you lack what you need, get creative._ Charles remembered and tapped the stair beside him with his index finger, using it as a guide for a series of fleeting telekinetic commands. In time with the tapping of his finger came the heavy thud of feet jogging past behind Erik. The magnekinetic whirled around, surprised by the sound and Charles took the opening, throwing up a blast of plaster dust around him and scrambling desperately across the gap, almost falling through in the process.

He dragged himself into a darkened room around the corner when he heard Erik charging up after him. He didn't wait for Erik to reach the door, just scrambled out onto the platform still standing outside the window and yanked his -now dust coated- white hood up to conceal his identity.

He was already pulling himself up onto the next level of the platform when Erik reached the window, resolutely ignoring the drop into oncoming traffic that awaited him should he lose his grip. He rolled across the next level and tried the window. Locked. So he pushed himself to his feet and limped over to the next one. Better. It wasn't locked but, randomly, had glass in it already. Too bad. He leapt up, hanging from one of the metal supports above him and kicked it in with both feet, taking two swings to completely break in, and dove inside, tucking into a flawlessly executed roll. Then he tugged the long white sleeves of his shirt over his hands to pull himself to his feet using the doorframe and ducked into the shadowed hallway, much to his pursuer's irritation. It seemed that his time on his high school's track team still would be coming in handy after all.

He stumbled down the hall to the lifts and smacked the button, not really feeling too confident that it would arrive in time. It did, to his great relief, opening to him just as Erik came into view at the opposite end of the hall. Charles bolted into the elevator and slammed the button that prompted the doors to shut, resolutely ignoring the smug look he'd just noticed spreading over his friend's face as he did so.

Naturally, the lift slammed to halt just moments after it began to rise, yanked back down by an unseen force. It slowly returned to Erik's floor and with a flick of his wrist, the doors snapped open to reveal… an empty lift. Erik's grin vanished and he quickly entered to find that the access panel above was still open. He pushed himself up through the opening to see his prey being pulled onto the fourth floor by a petite accomplice.

* * *

"Where are we going next?" Charles gasped, letting Karma help him stand. Pietro narrowed his eyes when the young professor didn't object in the slightest to his ducking under one arm to support him. He was now taking most of his mentor's weight, in fact.

"Has he hurt you?" Pietro asked tightly.

Charles shook his head.

"Professor?" Pietro pushed.

"I did it to myself." Charles stated. Pietro stared him down, until he continued. "I've got a bad leg." Charles clarified as Pietro basically carried him down the hall behind a hyper vigilant Xi'an. "Where are we going?"

"Seventh floor." Pietro informed him. "Wanda said that I'd be needed there and you're staying with me."

"She didn't say the last part." Charles observed.

"No, but it's still the case."

Charles just nodded. "He'll keep coming for me." He eyed Pietro's face adding. "It runs in the family."

Karma smiled "I'll handle it." She assured him and they fell into silence.

* * *

Erik continued his search for the anachronistic runner, but by the time he'd reached the fourth and then the fifth floor, his quarry was long gone. On the sixth he met with Cain, also on his way up.

"Lensherr." Cain acknowledged, not slowing his pace.

"Marko." Erik returned, pushing ahead of him. "Have you seen anyone out of place here?"

Cain squinted up at him. "What?"

Erik sighed impatiently and tossed him Charles' cane.

"What!" Cain exclaimed, his stormy blue eyes widening. "This— Is this blood?!"

"No." Erik admitted. "I thought it might be at first, but the iron content is all wrong. Unless Charles is fatally anemic and we've never noticed, it didn't come from him."

"It's still his cane."

"We're in agreement." Erik deadpanned. "So, you've seen nothing then?" He spun on his heel and abandoned the larger mutant in the stairwell, muttering. "Waste of time."

He had to find Charles. He absolutely refused to lose him, too.

* * *

"He knows that I'm here." Charles lamented exhaustedly as Pietro set him down in the nearest corner.

"You've cut your leg." Pietro appraised, yanking up his tattered pant leg to reveal the two bloody gashes in Charles' calf. "You didn't say anything."

"I didn't notice." Charles admitted, earning himself a glare from the usually amiable man.

"Can you handle it?" Xi'an inquired.

"Yes."

"What about Erik. He can't get caught up in this!" Charles snapped, tired of being ignored.

"She foresaw the occurrence." Karma stated with a shrug.

"And why wasn't I told?"

"You're horrible when you're upset." Pietro told him tonelessly, pulling out his handkerchief and beginning to tend to Charles' wound. "At least it's the same leg."

"Yes, thank you." Charles said sarcastically, crossing his arms over his chest and looking over all very upset. Poor Pete.

"Wanda has a plan." He tried, not brave enough to meet the gaze of an angry Charles.

"You almost died."

"You caught me."

"And what about Erik? This is dangerous."

"It's always dangerous." Pietro said sharply, snapping his gaze up from Charles' wound. "You can't protect everyone. You'll get yourself killed trying."

"Pietro…"

"I was just saying…" Pietro trailed off, averting his gaze once again, his blue-grey eyes looking suspiciously moist.

"I'm sorry." Charles whispered. Pietro huffed. "I had to—"

"Stop it." Pietro cut him off, finished with Charles' leg as well as the current conversation. He crossed over to the window to wait. "I'm not letting you get your self killed again."

"It wasn't—"

"There's no point discussing it any further." Pietro preempted, covertly wiping at his cheek with his sleeve as he stared out the window. There was an extended silence while Charles let him pull himself together again.

"I'm sorry I seem to have wrecked your uniform." Charles said lightly, breaking the somber mood. Pietro breathed out a laugh.

"That's alright." He responded. "I won't be needing it for a few decades now." The speedster remarked, before cutting off whatever else he'd intended to add with a whispered Romany curse. The language was far too guarded a concept in the twins' minds for us ever to translate telepathically, but it sounded like a swear to Charles, the way he'd said it.

Besides that, he'd been too focused on his own covert endeavor too observe such details anyway.

"I _am_ fallin' to my death, right?" Marie questioned, confused by Charles' efforts to slow her fall.

"Not really." Pietro assured her, and grabbed her securely around the waist, bundling her into the safety of the seventh floor. Marie closed her eyes just taking in the sound of her—surprisingly living- friend's voice for a few seconds, radiating relief and…

"Are you okay there, Marie?" Pietro asked, turning her around to face him so that he could study her expression. Her chocolate brown eyes snapped open to meet his, and the slap she landed on his face echoed throughout the room.

"Am I okay?!" She echoed, sounding irate.

"Oww…" Pietro said, gently cupping the red handprint she'd left on the side of his face.

"How the fuck do you think I feel? You lyin' asshole! I thought you were dead AGAIN!" Marie pulled at her hair as she stomped away from him, then spun back around, adding as an afterthought. "Stop doin' that."

"Yes, Ma'am." Pietro muttered, thoroughly cowed.

"Sorry 'bout your face…" Marie said more quietly, having come down from the adrenaline high enough to regret her rash action.

"It's fine." Pietro dismissed.

"It left a handprint." Marie confessed with a wince. "It's kinda prominent."

"Oh… Honestly, I'm just surprised that Charles didn't—" Pietro stopped as he turned to glance at Charles' corner to find it sorely lacking in Charles. "Charles!?"

"Wait. What?" Marie questioned, chasing after Pietro as he stormed out of the room.

"We need to find him."

"He's here. Okay, fine, but then you'd better tell me what the hell is goin' on." Marie agreed. Pietro acknowledged it with a nod, and they hurried down the hall to begin their search.

* * *

On the floor below them, Charles pulled his head back in the window. Karma probably would have been able to buy him some more time if he hadn't stopped to help catch Marie, but he didn't regret it. At least he'd get to say goodbye after all. Just as he was considering this Erik burst into the room through the door behind him.

"You." He accused.

Charles let out a sigh before replying. "Me." He pulled off his hood and turned to face his partner.

"What?" Erik breathed, at a loss. Charles raised a hand to stop him.

"I'm sorry about this, I really am. This is the only way we've got a fighting chance and believe me, my friend, I _never_ wanted to deceive you."

"Then tell me what is going on!" Erik snapped, crossing the room to stand in front of him and grabbing his shoulders rather roughly.

"I can't. Listen, for this plan that we have to work, I need to disappear for a while." Charles explained, silently willing Erik to understand. "I can't tell you where I'm going or for how long. I just need you to trust me."

"Whatever you're planning... Charles, you can't do this alone. You—"

"I know. But it can't be you."

Erik recoiled a bit, as if he'd been slapped, and Charles hastened to explain.

"Wanda and P—" Charles stopped himself, swallowing down the urge to reassure his grieving friend. "They wanted to help me too. They helped me plan this, but it's too dangerous for any of you to be involved. He already knows about you. And knowing will get you killed."

"I will _not_ lose you." Erik affirmed willfully. Charles reached up to touch the side of Erik's face, making eye contact with the other man while he responded.

"No. No you won't, but I don't intend to lose you either." Charles affirmed. His eyes flickered in and out of focus for a moment as he picked up a spirited projection from my older brother.

_Charles, where are you? We need to get out of here undetected and I want you in my sight._

Charles took a deep breath, and tried to steady himself.

"I have to go now."

Erik looked like he was about to argue, but was struggling to keep it inside.

"I—" Charles began but stopped himself, instead leaning his forehead against Erik's to project the rest directly into his thoughts. Erik gasped and held on a little more firmly.

"Charles…"

"I know." Charles confirmed, "No one can know about this. As far as the others are concerned, I've disappeared without a trace. You don't know how or where."

Erik nodded and leaned in for a lingering, goodbye kiss.

"I should go now." Charles restated. Neither of them moved. After the silence began to stretch, he addressed Erik's unspoken thought. "I _will_ come back, I promise." Charles smiled sadly. "You'd all better be safe and well when I come back." He threatened, finally stepping away.

"Go." Erik said roughly, averting his gaze. This was never going to be easy.

* * *

**A/N:** Okay, so I'm hoping you guys enjoyed this (well, obviously) and feeling kinda iffy on the last part... As you can see, I'm not too good at writing the emotional type stuff. I hope it's okay... Tell me what you think? I know I could definitely improve in that area... Also, I think the plot gets more complicated when i get stressed out, but that could just be me. Thanks for reading this. Review maybe?


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